Hidden Blessings
by SavingAngel8
Summary: 6th year. Harry has enough on his plate right now what with Sirius gone and Voldemort at large, but how will a secret sister affect his rapidly changing life? Eventual Romance HPGW& DMAP. Please R&R. I would love any feedback.
1. Too Much

**Yes, I know. I have revised this story so many times I can't count them all but I would recommend re-reading the first few before going on to the newer chapters—anywhere past Chapter 5—because I have added some things, especially in Chapter 3. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: This is the disclaimer to end all disclaimers. This disclaimer stands for the entire story from here on out. I don't own anything created by J.K. Rowling including her magical world and characters. I only own what I create.**

**Hidden Blessings**

**By: SavingAngel8**

**Chapter 1: Too Much**

A boy lay on his bed in Number Four Private Drive in the town of Little Whinging. At first glance, one would think his room unusual for a young man of his age. His bed looked to be incredibly uncomfortable, as his ankles were dangling over the foot of the bed. In fact, the whole room looked to be outfitted for a child, from the small lamp on the nightstand to the minuscule bureau by the door. Both had a significant layer of dust, however, and the only thing that seemed to be used at all was a trunk in the corner of the room that was overflowing with clothes and books.

None of these things seemed to bother Harry Potter as he stared absentmindedly at the ceiling. If anyone just glanced at him, they would think he was just sleeping with his eyes open. Indeed, it was the middle of the day and Harry was still in his pajamas, although he was on top of his covers instead of under them. He had not moved an inch in hours. But upon closer inspection, his eyes were glazed over slightly but deep in concentration.

He was, in fact, trying to be rid of his latest and most recurrent dream. The more he tried to not think of it, the more it seemed to repeat itself over and over again in his mind.

_Harry stood before the Veil of Shadows, staring at it blankly. He wore a black, hooded robe with the hood resting on the top of his head._

_While he was staring, His parents appeared in front of him, smiling the smiles he remembered well from photographs. All at once, Harry's scar seared and sent a white, hot pain across his forehead while a snake-like voice hissed in his head, "Kill." Harry moved his arms deftly upward and with a great strength he hadn't known was in him, he pushed his parents through the veil, never to see them again._

_As soon as his parents disappeared from sight, Cedric Diggory appeared, the same boy Harry remembered from school and his nightmares. Again, his scar flared and the same hissing voice said, "Kill, kill." Like with his parents, Harry reached forward and pushed Cedric through the veil._

_After Cedric came Ron and Hermione, the first wearing the same goofy grin on his face as he always did. As with Cedric and his parents, Harry's scar burned and the voice instructed him once more, "Kill, kill, kill." And so Harry did, without feeling a single ounce of remorse._

_Then came Sirius. He looked just as Harry remembered him, with his baggy clothes and messy hair. He was looking at Harry with the fatherly and loving look that Harry remembered the best. This time when his scar burned, the voice in his head said with mirth, "Hahaha! I don't even have to tell you what to do because you've already done it! Hahaha!" And with that, Harry watched as Sirius fell through the veil as he had that day in the Department of Mysteries._

_Then, to Harry's surprise, Hedwig came from behind Harry and perched on his shoulder. Harry looked inquiringly at Hedwig before she flew from his shoulder and through the veil._

_Then Ginny was in front of him. She looked beautiful, with her red hair falling in a thick curtain around her face and her deep chocolate eyes looking right back into his green. She wore a small smile but it reflected all the affection she had always had for the select few around her. Something in Harry came back to normal and for a second he returned the smile. Even when his scar burned, it was a dull pain, and the voice resounding in his head was small and squeaky when it told him what to do. Harry became his lifeless self again and did as he was told. As he watched Ginny fall through the veil, a silent tear rolled down his cheek._

The dream ended there. The first time Harry had had the dream, he was a bit disturbed by the last person's effect on him. He had reasoned with himself by saying that since it was the end of the dream, he was feeling remorse over all who had been killed. The message of the dream itself was obvious: he regarded himself as a threat to all he loved and cared for. Hedwig had stood for all those innocent people around him who were also in peril ultimately because of him.

Unaware to him, Harry's glassy eyes had been releasing tears that silently slid down his cheeks. They had been since the start of his recollection. He took a deep breath while wiping the salty tears away with his hands. It was only then that he heard the furious tapping on the window. Harry sat up and saw the very bird from his dreams looking very flustered and trying vainly to get his attention.

He sighed and reluctantly got up from the bed and opened the window to let Hedwig in. Hedwig flew in and began zooming around the room, letting out her anger. Because of her furry, she knocked some of Harry's quills and scrolls to the ground. Since their little talk, the Dursleys allowed him to have whatever he wanted in his room, including all of his magical and school things. In return, he did the chores asked of him and didn't take any of his magical things out of his room with the exception of Hedwig. Harry always kept his wand on him but wore long shirts to hide it in his back pocket.

Once Hedwig calmed down, Harry fed her an owl treat and removed the parchment from her leg. He saw the amber H sealing the back and immediately knew who the message was from. He opened it carefully, not knowing if Dumbledore was sending him good or bad news. He hoped, for his sanity, that it wouldn't be the latter.

_Dear Harry,_

_I hope you are doing well during these trying times. I know all that has recently happened must be hard on you and so I hope you know you can talk to me whenever you need to._

_I thought I should update you on a few things. Numerous Death Eaters have warrants out for their arrest and will face life sentences in Azkaban. Among the numbers are Bellatrix LeStrange and Lucius Malfoy. Some less prominent Death Eaters are being given the option of a trial but the outcome doesn't look promising for them._

_Also, the Ministry wants to hold a small memorial for Sirius and they want you to organize it. I understand if you don't want to do this but I encourage you to. This might ease the pain slightly and help you put closure to a few things. The Ministry also needs you present for the reading of Sirius's will. He has already told me that, were something to happen to him, we may keep headquarters in the same place._

_I also need you to do something for me. I need you to meet me at the Hogs Head tomorrow night at ten. I can't tell you anything right now but it is imperative that you come. There is a matter of great importance that we need to discuss and it must be in person. Ask the barkeep which room I'm in and knock twice when you come to the door. We will further this discussion tomorrow._

_Oh, I almost forgot! Mr. and Mrs. Weasley have written to me to ask if it would be possible for you to spend most of the summer with them. We'll also talk about this tomorrow, as I know you don't particularly like living with the Dursleys and I know Ms. Granger will also be spending some time with the Weasleys._

_I look forward to seeing you tomorrow, Harry._

_Sincerely,_

_Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore,_ _Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry_

Harry looked up from reading the note, a strange look on his face. Bewilderment from what was so important that Dumbledore needed to talk to him so soon mixed with sadness over the mention of Sirius. Harry had thought of what might be done in Sirius' honor by the Ministry or at least the Order, but only briefly. He had also given little thought to Sirius leaving anything behind in a will. It was all too much to think about right now.

Harry sighed deeply, a sigh that held all of the exhaustion and remorse he had been feeling for far too long. He looked up at Hedwig perched on top of the bureau and said, "Is it too much to ask for some peace every now and then?"

He lightly tossed the letter aside and looked at his half finished homework on the desk. He bent down and picked up the fallen parchment and quills that had been knocked to the ground in Hedwig's fury fly. As he stood up and replaced the things on the desk, he decided he'd go tell Uncle Vernon that he'd be out tomorrow night.

Harry got dressed slowly and trudged down the stairs. He was slightly hungry and decided to make a detour to the kitchen before going Uncle-hunting. As he turned the corner to the kitchen, he found he wouldn't have to go searching at all. Uncle Vernon was sitting at the kitchen table, having a coffee and reading the day's paper.

When Harry walked into the kitchen, Vernon looked up and a mixture of disgust and a hint of fear crossed his face for a moment before becoming decidedly annoyed. Harry smiled inwardly at the effect he had on his relatives. They put up a nasty front, but after he blew up Uncle Vernon's sister three summers ago, they had always secretly feared his powers.

Harry casually walked over to the refrigerator and while viewing its contents said, "I'm going out tomorrow night to meet a friend. I don't know when I'll be back but it will be late," Harry glanced at his uncle with a sarcastic smile, "and you don't have to wait up."

Vernon jumped up from the table like the chair was on fire. "WHAT? No, you do not make the rules around here. You can go out if I say you can. Understand?" His face was on the verge of turning purple, something Harry usually found comical, but Harry decided laughing would only make things worse.

"Well I'm sure my old friend Mad-Eye—the man with the rolling eye, you remember him—wouldn't be too happy if I wasn't allowed to go about as I pleased. You wouldn't want another talking to from him, would you?" Harry said smoothly, appearing unconcerned about his uncle's present state.

Though a good bit of color drained from Vernon's face, his voice held the same menacing tone, "Is that a threat, boy?"

Harry gave his uncle a quizzical look. "Why no uncle, how could you possibly think that? Either way, I am going tomorrow." And with that, Harry swept passed him and out of the room with a bag of crisps in one hand. Halfway up the stairs, he heard his uncle let out a frustrated cry.

The next day went by slowly for Harry, as most days do when something important is awaiting the person at the end of the day. He went about doing his normal chores and basically nothing all day. He had had the nightmare again last night and so he was very solemn and quiet. The Dursleys noticed but paid him no mind.

At ten till ten, Harry grabbed his wand and put it in his back pocket while walking over to the side of his bed. He knelt down and pulled from a loose floorboard a ceramic lion head. It was charmed by magic so every now and then it tossed its mane and roared softly. Harry took out his wand and put the tip on top of the lion's head and said softly, "_Abre._"

The lion froze and the top of it dissolved to reveal grayish powder. Harry took a handful and touched his wand tip to where the rest of the lion's head should have been and said "_Saca_." The top of the lion immediately reappeared, sealing its contents inside and away from view.

Harry put the lion back in its hiding place carefully, so as to not lose any of the Floo powder in his hand. He stood then and went downstairs. He passed the family room and saw the Dursleys sitting around the telly, watching the news. "I'm leaving. Don't wait up," Harry said casually as he walked into the sitting room where the fireplace was. Behind him, he heard his uncle snort.

Harry stepped into the fireplace and said in a crisp, clear voice, "The Hogs Head," and threw down his powder. The Dursley's sitting room vanished from view.

The bar room of the Hogs Head came into sight and once it was focused, Harry stepped out and began to wipe soot from himself. He hated traveling by Floo. He had bought the powder and the lion head last summer while shopping in Hogsmeade. He knew he would have no better form of transportation until he was able to Apparate and he was a little more than a year away from that.

As he finished dusting the soot from his clothes, he looked up and saw the dirty barkeep looking at him. When their eyes met, the man jerked a thumb towards the stairs before raising four fingers. Harry nodded in thanks before he turned towards the stairs and began to climb them two at a time.

When he got to the top, he walked briskly towards the fourth door on the left and knocked twice, as requested in the letter. He heard an old but strong voice say, "Come in."

Harry opened the door and saw Dumbledore sitting in an overstuffed armchair, reading over some papers in his lap. When he looked up, the concentrated look he had been wearing instantly vanished to be replaced by one of happiness. His twinkling eyes held mirth in them along with a hint of...what was it? Nervousness?

_Yeah right. Dumbledore? Nervous? I must be out of it._

Dumbledore smiled and said, "Please, come in. And close the door behind you."

Harry did as he was told and as he was walking over to the armchair Dumbledore had conjured for him, he heard the old man mumble a silencing charm.

_What could he possibly have to tell me that's so important he can't risk being overheard?_

Dumbledore looked back at Harry. "Sorry. I don't want to risk anything. You understand."

Harry gave him a quizzical look. _I told Hermione he could read minds._

"Of course, sir."

Dumbledore looked at Harry with an odd expression, something that almost seemed to be pity. Harry had hardly ever seen any of these emotions displayed on Dumbledore's face so openly before and he was having a hard time identifying them. But indeed, Dumbledore was displaying some kind of remorse for Harry and he couldn't for the life of him understand why.

"Well I might as well say this before I can't," Dumbledore said, more to himself than to Harry.

Harry looked at Dumbledore questioningly, wanting him to continue. "Professor, I'm sure whatever it is, I can handle it," he said anxiously, thinking about past experiences and bad news.

Dumbledore sighed deeply, a thing that seemed to make his entire body shake, before continuing, "Harry, I of all people understand how much you've been going through the past few weeks, too much actually, but I must now give you yet another burden to bear."

At this, Harry's previously attentive went rigid and he looked down for a moment at the pale brown carpet. He didn't think he could take much more in his life right now.

Seeing this, Dumbledore quickly added, "But this isn't so much a burden as it is a...a new opportunity so to speak." Dumbledore was choosing his words carefully.

Harry looked at his Headmaster with weary eyes, a weariness that reflected all the hardships he had carried throughout his life, a weariness that his eyes should not have possessed until a much later time in his life. A weariness that almost made Dumbledore reconsider telling Harry what he had intended to.

"Please sir, you can tell me," Harry said, trying to sound brave but unable to hide the slight fear.

Dumbledore knew there was no turning back now; Harry would not accept it. Dumbledore straightened himself to his full posture.

"Harry, you have a twin sister."


	2. First Blessing

**Hidden Blessings**

**By SavingAngel8**

**Chapter 2: First Blessing**

Time seemed to stand still. Harry looked at Dumbledore with a look of complete shock and bewilderment. Dumbledore stood there, looking at Harry with a sign of hope in his features. A hope that Harry would take this maturely and not lash out as he had before in Dumbledore's office that some three weeks ago, although Dumbledore could hardly blame Harry for his reaction.

Surprisingly, the first thing Harry said were four simple words, "Who, where, and how."

Dumbledore visibly relaxed and sat back down.

"You have to understand one thing before we get into the details. There was _no other way_ to handle this situation than how I did. You and the entire wizarding world could know nothing of her. It would have put us all in jeopardy. You thought last year was bad when you couldn't talk to or see me, but imagine if you had known of her, not even her whereabouts just the fact that she existed, and Voldemort had tapped into your mind and found out. People could and would have died, Harry, for Voldemort would have stopped at nothing to get to her."

"So why tell me now?" Harry said, trying to remain calm and accept Dumbledore's point but there was an uneven edge to his voice.

"Because we need her to come back. We need her to come to Hogwarts and we need her help," Dumbledore explained.

"Why?" Harry said with an icy tone.

Dumbledore sighed again, "Because she is a Seer."

If it was possible, Harry looked more shocked. "What?" Harry said in a barely audible whisper.

"She is an extremely powerful Seer, more powerful than your mother was, or any other Seer I can recall for that matter. No one suspected you had the gift; for one because only precious few knew Lily had the gift and two because you were a boy. The gift would have run in the blood of a girl. And so it did."

"What's her name?" Harry asked instantly, realizing he hadn't already.

Dumbledore smiled a warm smile. "Her name is Awena. It means seer in Welsh. It was your mother's favorite name as a child."

Some warmth flashed in Harry's eyes before he turned serious again.

"I want to see her."

Dumbledore chuckled. "All in good time my boy, all in good time. But first, you need to hear the whole story, so I can back up my reasoning for not telling you sooner."

Harry settled back in his chair, preparing to be there a while. Even if Dumbledore summed the entire story to 3 sentences, Harry had _a lot_ of questions. Dumbledore conjured up some tea and biscuits as well as a bowl of lemon drops before settling into his chair himself. He crossed his leg and laced his hands before continuing.

"When your parents found out that they were having twins, they were ecstatic. They would have told everyone in the wizarding world if it weren't for me. The prophecy had come into play shortly before your parents found out there were two of you. I kept them in check by reminding them that if the time came that if it was in fact either you or your sister Voldemort chose, the other sibling would be an ultimate threat to the chosen one.

"They told few about having twins. Minerva and I were among the privileged along with Remus, Sirius, and Poppy. Poppy was their medi-witch from the start and your nanny. When it came time for you to be born, we kept it very quiet and only the people your parents had chosen were present. When I told them that they would have to tell the rest of the world about one of you, Lily immediately singled out Awena. She knew from just looking at Awena that her daughter possessed the Sight and knew that Awena would be more appealing to the Dark Lord.

"So you were introduced to the world, Harry, as the only son of one of the most prominent wizarding families in all of England. Poppy would watch Awena when you and your parents had to make an appearance at some place or another. But your parents always made sure that the two of you spent as much time as possible together and that they were always there, I guess to try and make up for the lost time during the days."

"Then why don't I remember her?" Harry asked, cutting into the story. He thought that his memory might have betrayed him in not recalling these particular memories. "Surely I would have some recollection. Unless...did you..."

"Yes Harry, I had to put a memory charm on you, although a small one as you were so very young." Dumbledore said sadly.

Harry knew Dumbledore was regretting the decision he had had to make, so Harry calmly said, "Go on professor."

Dumbledore straightened himself before continuing, "Yes, yes, where was I. Oh, right. Well that fateful night came when Voldemort finally chose. I had put a charm around your parent's house to alert me if any danger broke into the house. I remember I was sitting in my office, ironically thinking about the next visit I needed to make to the Potters, and then the siren went off. There was no mistaking it, so I bolted out of my chair and ran. The no-Apparating inside school walls has been in place for centuries, contrary to popular belief. I had to run all the way to Hogsmeade, which was very hard for a man my age." Dumbledore showed the barest of smiles but knew that what was to be said next could have no humor in it.

"When I got to the house, I immediately saw James sprawled in the doorway. I began to panic and ran to your bedroom, where the door had been blasted into mere splinters of wood. My heart raced as I saw Lily lying dead in front of yours and Awena's shared cradle with only you inside, lying still. And then, miracle of all miracles, you moved. Your little head looked over and your green eyes met mine. I can't express in words at how grateful and at the same time how sad I was as well. I thought for sure Awena had been taken by Voldemort to use her gift for his own purposes.

"And then, from your bedroom closet, I heard a muffled cry. I went over and opened the door to reveal Awena! She was perfect, no harm done to her in any way. Your mother had stowed her in the closet before Voldemort broke into the bedroom. I thank Lily every day for keeping her wits about her during such a difficult time and I thank Awena for being asleep. It was, as I said, a miracle."

Harry's eyes had glazed over at the mention of his parent's death but now he refocused and leaned forward, at which Dumbledore paused. "Excuse me, professor, but I have another question. Wasn't the prophecy wrong then? I mean it should have been that three were born instead of just two. Why didn't you think that Awena might be the one that Voldemort wanted?" Harry had been anxious to ask that question since he'd been told about his sister because the prophecy had been one of the first things that he thought of.

Dumbledore smiled a little. "But you see, only two _were_ born on July 31." When Harry opened his mouth to protest, Dumbledore held up his hand. "Your mother, god rest her, went through a hard labor, resulting in you coming first on July 31. But then it took some time for Awena. She was born at exactly 12:00 AM on August 1st."

Harry made a small 'o' shape with his mouth and settled once more back into his chair. That would explain things. Dumbledore took this as his cue to continue.

"Quickly, I worked out a plan. I bundled up Awena with the blankets from her crib. I shrunk all of her toys and personal necessities and put them carefully into one of my many robe pockets. I went over to your crib and silently put the memory charm on you. With one last look, I Apparated back to the gates of Hogsmeade. I silently stole through the gates and up to my office. I alerted Hagrid to immediately go to your house and retrieve you before someone else could. I asked Poppy to watch and care for Awena, whom was wailing by then. I then told Minerva to meet me at Private Drive. I think you know the rest from there."

Harry deftly nodded and waited for Dumbledore to continue.

"When I got back from dropping you off, I collected Poppy and Awena and went straight to my office after summoning Minerva and Lupin. Sirius was trying to find Peter by this time but there was no reaching him. We briefly discussed what to do. We unanimously decided to get Awena out of the country. We also decided that because of her gift, she needed to go to a wizarding family that would be able to put her in a school that could train her to the best of her abilities.

"Minerva came up with the idea of putting her in a very prominent wizarding school and community in America, specifically in Berlin, Maryland. The school is called Sowbury Towers. It has one of the world's best Seer's there who would provide Awena with all the guidance she would need in order to develop and effectively use her gift.

"With, that settled, I called a friend in the American Adoptive Agency to see if any families in Maryland were adopting at the time. We were lucky, oh how we were lucky. We were truly touched by Merlin that night. As it turned out, a couple by the name of Johnson, one of the wealthiest wizarding families in that area, could bear no child and were desperate for one. Sex did not matter, nor did past history.

"My friend gave them a call and they were all too happy at the prospect of a daughter. I had to take a portkey over to Michigan where a friend of mine lived, as I couldn't Apparate over seas with so young a child. I Apparated from there to the Johnson's house and just from a glance, I knew Awena would have everything she needed there, except maybe you."

There was silence, Harry absorbing this information and Dumbledore waiting to see how he would react. Then,

"Did you erase her memories, too?" Harry asked, looking out the window into the darkness beyond, hating the fact that she had been banished from his knowledge with so simple a spell.

"No, I didn't," Dumbledore said reluctantly, knowing he was inspiring false hope in the boy. And indeed, Harry's head snapped back towards him with an intensity in his eyes.

"It's too dangerous to perform memory charms on a Seer. Their gift can be permanently altered, usually for the worse. When she was smaller, she did recall memories of you and her playing together but I'm sorry to say that she always thought them memories of playing at another little boy's house and dismissed them. When she got older, her parents got her a private tutor and she taught Awena how to control her gift. She doesn't even remember those childhood memories anymore."

"Won't her adoptive parents not give her up easily?" Harry asked bitterly, knowing he would fight for Awena if he had to.

"Yes, they will. When I gave Awena to them, I made it clear that I would one day come back for her and that they would have to give her up, no matter the time. They agreed to this, just happy that they would finally have a child. Secretly, I think they knew that, being the people who raised her, they would never really lose her."

Harry nodded, understanding. As much as he never wanted to lose Awena again once he got her back, he would understand if she would want to see her adoptive parents again. Then he asked the question he'd been dying to ask again since the beginning.

"Can I see her now?" he asked hopefully.

Dumbledore chuckled softly. He was amazed that Harry was taking this so well when this was as serious if not more important than the conversation they had had three weeks ago in Dumbledore's office.

"Of course Harry, but don't you want to know what she's like, as I plan to send you home after you see her. It's late."

It was then that Harry looked at the clock and it was indeed almost 11:30. He looked back at Dumbledore worriedly.

"Won't she already be asleep?"

Dumbledore chuckled. "No my boy, and even if she was it wouldn't matter. You see you can't actually meet her for awhile."

"Why can't I?" Harry said, very edgily. "It's been 16 years, why can't I see her when I want."

Dumbledore just smiled slightly. "Because I need to sort out a few things first. I have to write the Johnson's and get Awena packing in order to come to school. She will be staying at Hogwarts the two weeks before school and you may come and see her then. I am not going to tell her the whole story until you're there with us. I know this is hard for you but I know you understand." Dumbledore finished.

"I understand professor," Harry said absently. Not wanting to waste more time he said, "So what is she like?"

Dumbledore smiled, "Well the reason she's not asleep right now is probably because she's reading another book. She's as smart as our Ms. Granger and hardly ever goes a spare moment without reading whatever book she's currently fixated on. I think the two of them will give each other a run for the others' money," Dumbledore chuckled lightly at this and a smile was roused from Harry.

"Lets see. The Johnsons put her into many things, just grateful to have her. She did gymnastics for seven years along with ballet and was quite talented, winning several championships. But then she discovered her true calling in horseback riding. She has her own horse, Arion, a beautiful creature, pure black. Really magnificent."

"Um, professor. How could she have done so many things before she was eleven?" Harry asked.

"Well, you see Harry, Sowbury doesn't begin their instruction until a child is thirteen, though she is up to Hogwarts' 6th year standards. Awena started gymnastics and dancing at five and quit when she was twelve. She spent a year riding before she was accepted to school. The school itself allowed horses to board there as they compete with other wizarding schools. It's a States thing," Dumbledore explained.

"Oh, well are you going to allow Awena to bring Arion to school with her?" Harry inquired.

Dumbledore looked thoughtful for a minute and then said, "Well, I hadn't really thought about it that much but I suppose I shall have to, won't I?"

"What do you mean, professor?"

"You see, Harry, if a witch or wizard gets a pet or a familiar that is meant to last for a lifetime, that person acquires a special bond with the animal. Because of Awena's special powers, she is able to communicate telepathically with Arion, a rare quality that is unexplainable. Have you never wandered how you seemed to know how Hedwig was feeling at a particular moment?"

Harry, still in slight shock from hearing of his sister's telepathy powers, now remembered countless times when he had known, without looking at Hedwig, how she was feeling or if there was something wrong. He had always assumed that he was good at reading animal behavioral characteristics.

"Oh, alright then. Can I at least see her picture?" Harry asked, ready to be disappointed again.

Dumbledore looked startled for a moment and began patting his robes. "Oh, yes of course. Silly me, I almost forgot. I'll do you one better. Now where did I put it? Ah yes, here it is." He pulled a small, square object from an inside pocket. When he gave it to Harry, Harry almost dropped it out of shock but held onto it because of shear joy.

It was a mirror but not just any mirror. This was something like a two-way mirror, only Harry knew it only showed him an image and didn't allow the image to see with the viewer. Harry knew this because through the mirror he saw the most wonderful sight he had seen since seeing his parents in the Mirror or Erised during his first year at Hogwarts.

There in the mirror, reading a book on an extremely large window seat was Awena. Harry stopped breathing. She was beautiful. She had inherited all of their mother's soft facial features except Awena had black hair that matched his own. Although it was a different color, the soft, voluptuous curls that hung at the end were undoubtedly Lily's. He couldn't believe how much like their mother she had become. He guessed that as soon as they were together, they would look like Lily and James reincarnated.

"Uncanny but beautiful resemblance, isn't it?"

At the sound of Dumbledore's voice, Harry began to breathe again, not realizing he had stopped, and for the first time in over three weeks, he smiled. It was a true, genuine smile that lit up his now glassy eyes.

"She's not a new opportunity, professor. She's a blessing."


	3. Home Again

**Hidden Blessings**

**By: SavingAngel8**

**Chapter 3: Home Again**

Harry was nervous. No, nervous wasn't the word. He needed a word much stronger than nervous but he just couldn't think of one right now as he sat up in his room at the Dursleys. He was one hour away from going to the Weasley's and staying there for the remainder of the summer. As much as he was looking forward to being around people who cared about him instead of people who loathed his very existence, he was dreading the visit all the same. He knew he had to tell them about Awena and he was worried beyond belief at what their reaction would be. What if they viewed her as just another burden, another person to be protected from Voldemort, someone they didn't want. Somewhere in him, he knew that they would naturally and willingly except her as part of the family they had all managed to keep together over the last few years, but his rational side couldn't be heard in his current state of mind.

Harry jumped as Hedwig came through the open window and flew over to his shoulder. She nipped affectionately at his ear, concern etched in her wide, wise eyes. Harry sighed as he stroked her feathers and realized he was overreacting to something he had no control over. If the Weasley's and Hermione rejected Awena, then it happened and he couldn't do anything about it.

It didn't help his mood that he had had to Floo over to the Ministry the previous day in order to go over Sirius's will and details of a memorial service. Fudge had put on quite the production, greeting Harry as he arrived in the main entry chamber and chattering at him all the way up the twisting elevators to a formal conference room. Several official Ministry people, more than was actually necessary, were waiting for them and they all personally greeted Harry before sitting around the large table. Harry forgot their names as soon as the wizard attorney sitting directly across from him began to speak.

First he explained that Mr. Black's will had been made while he was in hiding and left in the care of Albus Dumbledore, who had handed it over to the Ministry upon Mr. Black's death. Because Sirius had been found innocent of all charges against him, the Ministry had acknowledged the validity of the will and agreed to carry out its wishes. The house would be under the control of Albus Dumbledore until Harry turned seventeen at which time Harry would assume full ownership. Until then, Harry was in possession of all material objects within the house and could do with them what he wished.

There was the additional matter of Sirius's house elf and what to do with him, at which point the attorney snapped his fingers sharply. The door opened and an Auror escorted the ugly figure of Kreacher into the room. Kreacher was wringing his hands and his eyes darted from face to face until he saw Harry. A sneer quickly formed on his wrinkled face. As he spoke, his voice gradually got louder and louder in defiance.

"Kreacher will never serve such an undeserving master who makes friends with mudbloods and traitors and disgraces Kreacher's lovely mistress simply by breathing. Kreacher will not allow any more filth to enter mistresses' house now that stupid young Master Black is dead and gone, and good rid—"

"Kreacher, shut up!" Harry practically yelled. He couldn't tell whether he had stopped Kreacher for fear of the elf revealing too much about the Order or because of his intense anger over the slight to Sirius. And to Harry's surprise, Kreacher did just that. The house elf clutched at his throat comically and opened his mouth as if trying to produce words but no sound came out. Kreacher finally adopted a look of the most extreme hatred and glared at Harry as if he wished his eyes could actually shoot daggers.

"Well, that clears that up," the attorney said in a bored voice. "Mr. Potter, you are clearly the new owner of this elf effective immediately and it is your choice to either keep him or dismiss him."

Harry thought about being rid of the horrible burden who had played a role in Sirius's death for almost a full minute before realizing that Kreacher would then be free to go back to Bellatrix and tell her anything she wanted to know about the Order that he hadn't already.

"I will keep him," Harry said. Kreacher was an annoying little bugger but one that Harry would have to put up with for now. He turned a cold gaze on the house elf. "Go back to the house and do not leave it until I tell you to do so."

Kreacher looked as if he could scratch his own eyes out in fury at having to obey but he disappeared with a crack.

Fudge took this opportunity to lean forward towards Harry. "Mr. Potter, there is the small matter that Sirius has left no address pertaining to the whereabouts of his residence. If the Ministry were to know where it was, then we could easily—"

"I don't know the address," Harry said quickly, attempting to adopt an exasperated look of a teenager who didn't want to be dealing with these things. "I'm sure Sirius had his reasons for not telling anyone seeing as he was on the run for his life for crimes he didn't commit." An edge had entered Harry's tone as he kept going. "Perhaps Dumbledore will assist you."

Fudge turned slightly red, mostly in frustration, because he knew Dumbledore would never give him any information and Harry suspected Fudge knew he was lying. But the Minister quickly attempted to suppress his anger and went on in a more sympathetic tone.

"Of course, Mr. Potter. We know that this is a difficult time for you and we understand your frustration with the situation. While the Ministry admits openly that it was terrible for your godfather to have gone through so many hardships, you must understand that our actions were well-intentioned for the safety of the wizarding world as their was no other way for us to have handled the case with the evidence we possessed at the time." Harry narrowed his eyes at this but said nothing. Fudge hurriedly continued. "However, while we know we can never put things completely to rights for Sirius Black due to his unfortunate death, the Ministry wishes to fully fund any kind of memorial you think appropriate in honor of him."

Harry had been thinking about this since his meeting with Dumbledore and returned the Minister's gaze with a hint of defiance while he spoke.

"Very well, Minister. I am grateful for yours' and the Ministry's generosity. I would like to organize a small memorial service for Sirius at Hogwarts, as it was the one place I know he truly loved. I think a marker of some sort would be best, but we can figure out the details of that later. And I know some people, myself included, would want to say a few words naturally."

Fudge was nodding and smiling absently while Harry was talking. "Yes, of course, Harry. That sounds wonderful. And I have already begun to prepare a small speech to show my deepest regrets and—"

"No," Harry cut in, forcefully. He calmed himself before he continued. "I'm sorry, Minister, but my one requirement of this memorial is that no Ministry officials be there that I don't specifically invite. As I said, I am grateful for what the Ministry is doing to," here Harry smiled sarcastically, "correct their past mistakes, but I can firmly say that Sirius wouldn't have wanted this memorial to be a big affair, something that would surely occur if many Ministry officials, including yourself, were to attend."

Harry laughed out loud at the remembrance of the way Fudge's face had practically turned puce after that. The Minister had argued for several more minutes about Harry's condition but Harry was unrelenting and Fudge finally had to give up. He grudgingly told Harry he would be in contact with Professor Dumbledore, whom Harry was to meet with in order to finalize the details of the memorial. Harry jovially shook everyone's hands and expressed his false gratitude again before leaving.

Harry shook his head at the memory as he got up. He made sure he had packed everything he needed for the umpteenth time before going over to his window and pulling out the small mirror he had come to treasure most in the last couple of weeks.

"Awena," he said softly, speaking to the mirror.

Immediately a vision appeared in the small square. Harry was still struck by how similar she was to their mother every time he saw her, something he did at least once a day if not more. He noticed she was packing and a questioning look briefly crossed his face before he remembered that Dumbledore had sent him word earlier in the week saying that he had sent the Johnson's a letter saying he needed Awena to finally come back to where she came from. The Johnson's sent a letter back in reply that, although they were deeply dismayed at having to hand over their only daughter, they would honor the promise they had made all those years ago and let her go without question.

Harry briefly wondered how Awena and the Johnson's had reacted towards the letter, whether the couple was as miserable as he imagined they might be. He shook his head before watching her pack for a few more minutes. It took him a while to realize that two or three tears had escaped her beautiful navy blue eyes, which contrasted his magnificently. Their father's eyes, Harry remembered. He was troubled at seeing his sister cry and wished he could be there to comfort her. She stopped packing for a moment and silently stood where she was, obviously lost in thought. After a minute or two she seemed to come back to reality and wiped away the tears that had been trickling down her face before heading for the bathroom.

As soon as she stepped into the bathroom, the mirror clouded over in black swirls of smoke. Harry sighed as he took his eyes away from it so that its surface went blank. He had figured out long ago that the mirror was charmed to hide any inappropriate occurrences from view with the black smoke, something he was very grateful for. He had also figured out that even though the picture was blocked, the sounds weren't and Awena loved to sing no matter where she was. Harry would sit staring at the smoke for half hours at a time just listening to her sing, letting her wonderful voice wash over him in waves.

Harry glanced at his clock and saw that it was 7:00. With a start he realized it was time for him to Floo over to the Weasley's. He hastily grabbed some Floo powder from his secret compartment before shrinking his things with a word, something he had learned how to do without magic in fourth year. He put his bags in an inside pocket of the jacket he was wearing and made his way downstairs. He saw the Dursleys eating dinner but didn't say a word to them. They knew he was leaving and in return didn't acknowledge his presence. Harry stepped into the fireplace said loudly and clearly "The Burrow," and was gone in a flash of smoke as he threw down the powder.

Harry landed in the Weasley's dusty fireplace quickly and his knees almost buckled beneath him at the sudden impact but he was able to steady himself in time. He peered out of the opening, noting that no one was in the living room, before stepping out and brushing himself off. He heard laughter from the kitchen and assumed they were getting ready for dinner.

Harry smiled to himself. Mrs. Weasley probably hadn't told anyone else he was coming so that it would be a surprise. It was just what he needed, a real family welcome. The smile quickly vanished, though, as he remembered what he had to tell them. He patted his robe pocket to make sure he still had his miniaturized belongings with him before taking a deep breath and walking into the noisy kitchen.

All he heard at first were yells and a scream before becoming engulfed in a jumble of arms, all desperate for a chance to give him hugs. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were there, along with the four youngest Weasley's and Hermione. Harry received everyone's greetings with hugs and kisses of his own, a smile plastered on his face. Finally it got down to just Ginny and when Harry saw her, something fluttered in his stomach. Her hug put his troublesome mind at rest for a blissful moment. She kissed him lightly on the cheek before moving back and saying, "Welcome back Harry. We've all missed you." Harry's smile dropped a fraction at the last comment. He knew that the word she really meant was worried not missed.

As everyone began to sit back down, Harry remained standing. He saw Mrs. Weasley conjure a chair next to Ron and a plate appear magically. It took them a few seconds to realize that Harry had not joined them at the table and as they looked back at him, everyone fell silent at the grave look on Harry's face. Each mind was conjuring up some dreadful news that Harry had brought, but no thought came close to the actual news.

Hermione spoke first and her words cut the tension slowly, as if with a dull butter knife.

"What is it, Harry?"

Harry was startled out of his reverie long enough to begin.

"I have a matter to discuss with everyone."

Harry paused and contemplated if he should be blunt or draw the subject out. He decided that the sooner he said it, the sooner he'd know their opinion and the sooner he could leave if he had to. The seven people sitting around the table stared up expectantly.

"Dumbledore has just informed me that I have a sister who has been living in the States for the past 15 years. She is now coming to England and will be attending Hogwarts this year."

Everyone was deadly silent, contemplating what Harry had just said, wanting to reply but finding no words.

Finally Ron, who had been in awe of the news, said, "Wow, really Harry? Do we get to meet her?"

Harry smiled slightly at the astonished but eager look on Ron's face.

"Of course Ron but I suppose I should explain first."

Coming to her senses, Mrs. Weasley said, "Of course dear, but please sit down and eat something while you tell us what I am sure will be a very interesting story."

Fred chuckled as he started to spoon mashed potatoes onto his plate. "Yeah, relax mate, you looked like you thought we were going hex you."

"Or throw food at you," chimed in George, his mouth half full of peas.

"Or hex and throw food at you," they said in unison.

Ginny and Ron laughed while Hermione rolled her eyes, flicking a bit of chewed pea away from her plate. Harry just smiled as he walked to his place between his two best friends and sat down. He put some food on his plate and began to talk again with a lighter heart.

"Wow! She's gorgeous, Harry!"

Harry laughed once again at Ron. Everyone had retired to the living room and Ron was rolling on and off the balls of his feet now as he gazed at her through Harry's enchanted mirror. Ginny and Hermione were sitting on the armrests of Harry's chair and the rest of the Weasely clan was standing behind him.

As Awena did something with her wand, Ron pointed and angrily said, "Hey! She's not allowed to do that! She's underage!"

Mr. Weasley said calmly, "Actually, she is. Sowbury Towers has a different policy with under-aged witches than the Ministry does. They allow their students to perform magic out of school because they believe that the students learn better with experience along with essays and research. They trust that their pupils won't use their freedom for ill purposes and monitor them just in case."

"Just because it's an all girls school doesn't mean that girls are incapable of getting in trouble," Ron grumbled.

"I can't believe you're only going to be here for two weeks," Hermione said, shooting a narrowed glance at Ron and changing the subject. "You must write us after you meet her to tell us what she's like. I can hardly wait for school to start now!"

"Can you ever?" Ron said under his breath but was silenced with a glare from Hermione while the twins just snickered.

Harry just smiled and sighed. It was nice to be home.


	4. A World of His Own

**Hidden Blessings**

**By: SavingAngel8**

**Chapter 4: A World of His Own**

While Harry was enjoying the company of his friends and Awena was unknowingly preparing for a new chapter of her life, on the outskirts of London a pallid young man was in a world of his own. Actually, the world would be better described as a nightmare. His brow was sweaty from sitting in the same position for almost an hour, unable to move or make any noise whatsoever, fearing for his life.

Fear. That was an emotion he hadn't felt for a long time, not since his very early childhood, a place he did not care to re-visit at the time.

After all, Malfoys weren't allowed to feel fear.

Yes, this frightened boy was none other than Draco Malfoy, the Prince of Slytherin. Usually others feared him and would be in hiding but now the situation was quite the reverse. He carefully tilted his head sideways, to the left more precisely, to look beyond his confines. He heard light footsteps, voices, and saw an occasional person moving about. They couldn't see him though, but they could if he moved. He silently sighed and leaned his head back against the solid part of the space that his back was resting against, closing his eyes. As Draco sat in that uncomfortable position, one question was running through his mind: What would he do now? As Draco thought that, an image flashed in front of his eyes, one filled with green light and life-shattering words…

_NO! I won't go there right now! I need to focus on living right now_, Draco thought quite forcefully, making the image leave his already cluttered thoughts.

That image, though, had caused a single tear roll down Draco's face. In his angry state, Draco lifted his left hand and jerkily wiped the tear away. He would not cry in the presence of others, even if those others could not see him. He would regret his pride and this action for a long time to come.

You see Draco was hiding inside an invisible space that appeared to be a wall to all outsiders. His father had installed it for emergency purposes, even though Draco thought it would never be necessary. Merlin, how ignorant he had been. Anyway, any person on the other side would only know the wall was there if he or she were to fall or reach through it. If a person who was hiding in the wall, namely Draco at the time, were to stick any part of this body out of the confines of the secret space, it would have the same effect as a limb emerging from beneath an invisibility cloak. Only in this case, it would be a limb sticking out of a solid stonewall.

This was exactly what Kingsley Shacklebolt was seeing right now. He had just seen what looked like an elbow appear and disappear through a seemingly solid wall at the end of the hallway he was standing in. He looked puzzled for a moment before realization dawned on him. He saw Moody on the first landing and motioned for him to come up to where he was. Moody's focused expression immediately changed into one of pure excitement. Somehow, Kingsley could not fathom how, Moody made it up the grand stone staircase in seconds without making a single sound, although the look of glee did not leave his face.

When Moody was finally at his side, Kingsley said in soft undertones, "He's hiding in a hidden wall at the end of the hallway." Moody looked as if he could do a jig right there and then but all he did was smile maniacally and set off the silent sensor that would bring the other Aurors to their current position. When they had gathered, he quietly informed them all of the current situation and their next move.

Draco noticed that outside his hiding place, things had gone deathly quiet but he knew better than to let his guard down for so small a hope that they had left. He held his breath and was about to turn his head to look out before his hope was completely shattered. Numerous hands reached through the "wall" and pulled him into the hallway.

_I never got to tell her that I loved her_ was his last coherent thought before multiple spells were hurled at him.

Draco woke in a whitewashed walled room facing a very large mirror that was built into the wall. If he had watched any Muggle shows in his lifetime, he would know that this was in fact a two-way mirror. As he tried to move his aching body, he found his feet and hands strapped to the chair he was currently propped up in. His head was free to move but he had splitting headache and didn't bother to evaluate his surroundings.

He heard a soft click and saw a door opening out of nowhere in the wall off to his right. Draco would have thought that this was rather cool had the person in the doorway not been who it was. Moody. A wave of fear passed over him when he saw the malicious smile that Moody had on his twisted face. If anyone could scare the dragon dung out of Draco, it was Moody. Draco audibly gulped as the Auror began to advance towards him.

Draco's years of being his father's son had taught him something and he managed to come to his senses to check to see if Moody had anything on him that might be a threat to Draco. He looked first at the set of Aurora robes Moody had on but surprisingly there was no indentation of a wand anywhere on Moody's person, though Draco checked in all the hard places.

_Well that's a relief. If all he's going to do is talk to me then he'll get bloody no_- Draco's thought was cut off as he saw that Moody did carry something that was even worse than a wand. In his right hand, Moody held a potions vial that contained a purple liquid. Draco knew what that was and couldn't believe that the Ministry would authorize something like this.

Draco cleared his throat and tried to keep the waver out of his voice, "The Ministry doesn't allow Veritaserum to be administered to underage wizards."

If anything, Moody looked even crazier and a strange twinkle sparked in his eye before saying, "Oh, yes, I know, but I persuaded them that, under these _dire_ circumstances, Veritaserum was absolutely necessary."

Moody said the word dire in the most sarcastic tone Draco had ever heard. Draco could do nothing but gape with his eyes, for if he let his mouth drop down to his chest as pertained with the act of gaping he would give Moody an opportunity to pour the vile liquid down his throat. If this was going to happen, Draco wasn't going down without a fight.

Moody steadily advanced, his smile never faltering. When he reached Draco, he reached over with amazing quickness and snapped Draco's head back, clamping his fingers over Draco's nose painfully. Draco managed to hold out for an entire minute and a half before his mouth opened to gasp for air. Moody took his opportunity, pouring all of the liquid down Draco's throat before clamping his other hand over Draco's mouth, allowing the vial to shatter on the floor below. Draco, unable to breathe or spit out the potion, was forced to swallow, albeit choke, it down. Moody gave a satisfied smirk as he let go of Draco's nose and mouth, allowing the boy to gulp down a considerable amount of air.

Draco felt his head spinning and knew that the potion was taking effect and fighting it was useless. Before long, Draco's head hung forward onto his chest and he didn't say a word. Moody conjured himself a chair and sat down across from the now placid boy.

"Now, Mr. Malfoy." At this, Draco looked up, his eyes glazed over and looked blankly at Moody. "You're going to tell us everything we want to know," Moody said, the malicious grin re-setting itself into his features.

Two hours later, Draco vaguely recognized that Moody was beginning to get impatient with his answers. Moody had gotten Draco to reveal everything he knew about his father, the Cause, and the Dark Lord. The first hour was mostly used up with questions about Draco's house and what they _really_ kept hidden there, such as incriminating documents, blackmail material and other such things that his father had used to gain various support and titles at the Ministry and in other places. The last hour had been used to force Draco into spilling all the incriminating evidence about fellow Death Eaters and their families. Now Moody was beginning to get annoyed because Draco would not answer his important questions on the Dark Lord. He wanted to know what Voldemort was planning to do next and where he was located. Draco could not respond because he simply did not know and this did not satisfy Moody in the least.

"I know you know something you wretched boy! Tell me where the Dark Lord is!" Moody shouted from where he was pacing around Draco.

'I don't know where he is," Draco answered in a monotone. His head was beginning to hurt tremendously and he knew it was the aftermath of so large a dose coming to its end.

"Listen to me, you horrid little brat," Moody spat, inches away from Draco's own face now, "You know where he is and your going to be punished severely for your-…"

"STOP THIS IMMEDIATELY!" a voice thundered suddenly from somewhere in the room. Draco couldn't register where because he took this opportunity to black out.

Draco came to groggily, a strip of sunlight streaming through a pair of almost-closed curtains to his left. He tried to sit up but as he did, memories of the previous day (or at least he thought it was the previous day) came rushing through his mind and he lay back down, groaning. How could this have happened? He would undoubtedly be shunned in Slytherin now. He had probably put more than half of his classmate's parents in prison, or at the very least under serious scrutiny by the Ministry, because of what he had told Moody and the other Aurors.

Draco pushed these thoughts to the back of his mind and decided to deal with one thing at a time. First off, where the hell was he? He pushed himself up onto his elbows and immediately recognized the room by the emerald curtains hanging from his bed and the gloomy appearance with false windows for light. He was in his Slytherin dormitory, in his own bed too. He was also wearing standard issue Hogwarts purple silk pajamas for those who decided not to bring their own bedclothes. As Draco looked down wearily at his attire, too tired to be disgusted, Dumbledore walked in.

"Ah, Mr. Malfoy! I see you're awake now. How are you feeling? Should I call for Madame Pomfrey to make you anything? A sleeping draught? Some pain medicine, perhaps?"

"Actually some Pepper-Up Potion would be great, professor," Draco said in an emotionless voice.

"Alright, I'll send for her when I leave. As you've most likely already discovered, you're at Hogwarts and are to stay here for the remainder of the summer until the school term starts again. You have free-reign of the castle until the rest of the students get here, which should be in a little over three weeks," Dumbledore explained. "Why don't you rest today and we'll have a chat tomorrow morning when you've recovered. I'll have the house elves bring your meals periodically and you can ask for anything you might want. Is there anything I can get for you right now?" Dumbledore said inquiringly.

Draco thought for a moment before saying, "Actually, can I have a book or two please?"

Dumbledore chuckled before saying, "Of course Mr. Malfoy. I'll send a house elf from the kitchens to bring you breakfast and take down a list of books."

He turned to leave but turned back at the last minute.

"Don't worry, Mr. Malfoy. You'll be fine now that you're here."

Draco waited for Dumbledore to close the door before snorting. As if he was going to be _fine_ anytime soon. Draco propped himself up against the headboard of his canopy bed, sighing angrily. Things were definitely going to be different from now on. For better or for worse, Draco honestly couldn't say. And truth be told, that kind of scared him.


	5. First Impressions

**Hidden Blessings**

**By: SavingAngel8**

**Chapter 5: First Impressions**

As Awena stepped off the large crimson train, the wind ruffled her white pleated skirt and she smoothed her hands over her dark green button down shirt. She had to squint against the sunlight shining off the metal of her transport to make out the carriage that awaited her. Her eyes opened wide in surprise as she took in the gruesome, emaciated looking horse with wings and a beak that was set to pull it. The creature turned its head to look at her with blank eyes and stamped its foot impatiently, giving a silent command for her to hurry up. She smiled, a little wary, and charmed her trunk to follow her as she made her way over to the carriage, stowing it in the underhand compartment before opening the door and climbing into the compartment. She jumped slightly as the carriage started moving not a moment after the door had clicked shut.

The carriage ride was bumpy for the most part, seeming longer due to her anxiety and anticipation of what lay both beyond and behind her. She prayed that Arion had gotten there all right. The letter she had received had simply said she would go to England ahead of him and her horse would be transferred and already on the grounds of the school by the time she arrived. She hoped they would be able to accommodate him; she had been reading up on this infamous "Hogwarts" since the first letter from the headmaster arrived and it had been clear the school was unaccustomed to animals that were above a foot tall. She shook her head, trying to make her worries disappear from her head. _Everything will be fine_, she assured herself. _Stop being silly_.

The carriage came to an abrupt halt, effectively snapping Awena out of her thoughts. She leaned forward and peered out of the small window on the door; suddenly she was very aware that she had absolutely no real clue about what kind of world she would be stepping out into, making it harder by the second for her to open the door and do so. Her jaw dropped as she gazed up at the enormous castle that lay outside and swallowed audibly, even more worried about what she had gotten herself into.

The decision to exit the carriage was unexpectedly made for her when the door was suddenly pulled open. She would have tumbled out onto the rocky ground if she hadn't swiftly moved a hand to catch herself on the doorframe. Blushing deeply, she scooped up her small travel bag from the seat next to her and stepped out into the cool afternoon breeze. She stood straight, chin held high, determined not to be embarrassed about her moment of clumsiness, and looked up to meet the face of her greeter. What she saw made her freeze.

This man was clearly a giant. He must have been at least eight feet tall, with most of his head covered in long scraggly black hair. His clothes were ragged and worn and looked to have several long-dried stains on them of substances Awena did not want to think about. The most surprising characteristic about him, however, were that his barely visible eyes were swimming with unshed tears.

The giant sniffed a little before saying in a shaky voice, "Yer look jus' like 'er."

She stood there, stunned and puzzled for a moment, wondering if he was even talking to her. He seemed to come out of his reverie quickly, though, and smile at her—at least she thought that was what he was doing under that beard of his.

"Sorry 'bout that. I'm a li'll tired is all. 'Ello! My name's 'Agrid." His hand shot out from underneath his huge robe.

Awena felt extremely small as she placed her hand in his. "It's nice to meet you, Hagrid. I'm Aw-."

"Oh we all know 'ou ya are," he interrupted, winking at her. "Yur to go through those doors o'er there and some'un will be waitin' for ya."

With that, he turned his back on her and began leading the creature and carriage away. She heard a faint sniffle as he went around the corner and was out of sight.

Awena was left feeling terribly confused and a little tired herself as she turned to face the huge set of double doors. She sighed and readjusted her bag before she began to walk up the stone steps. When she came to the doors, she hesitated again, but squared her shoulders and resolutely pushed them open. Through the gap she created, she stepped into a vast entrance hall with a ridiculously high ceiling. As she marveled at the height of the space, she took a step forward and nearly ran into another person waiting to welcome her. She stopped herself in time to avoid a collision and looked up into a pair of twinkling blue eyes. The man in front of her was quite old and rather tall. This man's robes matched his eyes with their rich navy blue color and the material seemed to sparkle in various places every time her gaze shifted. Awena had to take back her previous step in order to view him properly.

"Hello, Miss Johnson. My name is Albus Dumbledore. I am the headmaster here at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I trust you had a pleasant journey?" All of this was said with a smile that wrinkled up his face.

Awena was unable not to return such a warm greeting and smiled back. "Yes, it was, thank you. That scarlet train was lovely."

"I'm glad you thought so. Would you care to see your chambers? We can have a tour of the grounds afterward." There was a subtle anxiousness in his eyes, but she could have been imagining it.

She was about to nod but stopped and frowned. "My trunk…" she started as she realized it had been forgotten on the carriage Hagrid had led away. But Professor Dumbledore waved a hand before offering his arm to her.

"It will be delivered soon. Come, we have much to do today."

She nodded and took his arm. As they began walking, she remembered there was still one pertinent question left unanswered. "Professor," she asked, trying to put some confidence in her voice, "may I ask you something?"

She was surprised when he shook his head. "I'm sorry Miss Johnson, but once you're settled in we will sit down and many questions will be answered then."

She had no idea what other questions he could be referring to but said no more as they began to climb a flight of stairs. He led her up stairs before stopping on a landing. She didn't understand why he didn't continue, as there were plainly still stairs left in front of them, when the entire staircase gave a startling lurch and moved to join with another one. She would have fallen if Professor Dumbledore hadn't put an arm out to steady her. Once attached securely to the other staircase, Dumbledore continued onward before pausing on yet another landing. Awena tried not to look exasperated and held on to his arm.

This continued for a while until Awena had counted they had gone up six floors before the final staircase attached to a long corridor. She sighed in relief when Professor Dumbledore took it and led her around a couple of corners before coming to a stop about twenty feet from the next turn. She looked up at him curiously. This was one of the strangest places she'd ever been in and was almost excited to see what came next. She was not to be disappointed.

He smiled down at her. "Now, I must ask you to think of a password. Two passwords actually, one that will get you to the next corridor and the other will be used to access your rooms. After you create the first password, you will only need to say it before walking around any corner in this castle and your room's corridor will appear. I'll demonstrate later, no worries," he said, reassuring the confused expression on her face.

He waited expectantly and she thought for a moment. A grin spread across her face and she said, "Aut viam inveniam."

Professor Dumbledore smiled as he began forward again. As she watched with wondering eyes, the corridor shifted and changed to be more rounded. When they had made the turn completely, it was evident they were in a different part of the castle than before. She guessed they were on a walkway to a secluded area because there were large, rectangular arrow loop windows cut out on either side of her, twelve in all, from which she could see the bulk of the castle behind them and what looked to be a tower in front of them.

"The windows are charmed in various ways. They will not let any cold in and one would be unable to get out of them unless riding a broom, which you can't summon to come through them. People can come in through them but only if they know the correct password."

Awena nodded absently, admiring the breathtaking view. Her attention, however, was eventually caught by another kind of magnificence in the portrait they were approaching at the end of the walkway. The painting displayed an extremely beautiful woman with the lightest blond hair Awena had ever seen. It flowed in a soft wave down her back, the top pulled back and woven into an intricate pattern with clips. She was draped in a long medieval gown of the deepest green and the color complimented her complexion perfectly. She was arranging an assortment of flowers in a vase but stopped and looked up excitedly as the pair came to stop in front of her.

"Dumbledore! What a pleasant surprise. Am I to be of use this year?"

The woman's voice was melodic and elegant and Awena smiled at her greeting. She seemed friendly enough and not at all standoffish, as Awena would have expected a lady of such obvious high class.

Professor Dumbledore also smiled at the woman. "Yes Ella, I think these quarters will be the perfect thing for our new student. Awena, this is Ella. She will be the guardian of your quarters for this year as long as would like to reside in them."

Awena was slightly confused by his words but tried not to show it. "It's very nice to meet you, Ella. Or would you prefer I call you Ms…"

Ella shook her head. "Ella is fine dear. It will be a pleasure to have you."

"If you would like to go in, Awena, you can give Ella the second password now," Professor Dumbledore said.

Awena finished her previous sentence by saying, "Aut faciam."

Ella smiled knowingly and Awena suspected she had heard the first password. The portrait swung open and a spiral staircase was revealed.

Professor Dumbledore motioned for Awena to go ahead of him and she started up to what she was sure would be another pleasant surprise. She gasped as she emerged from the stairwell into a brightly lit room. It was large and circular with light filtering from six windows cut out evenly around the wall. A fire was already burning in the fireplace to her right and above it was a mantelpiece and a rectangular mirror. Next to the fireplace, a large couch and two comfy looking armchairs framed a plush emerald green rug. To her left was a long, oval table that sat eight people, three on each side and two at either end. All the furnishings in the room except for the rug were black; shiny mahogany for the table, mirror, and mantle and suede on the couch and chairs. Everything was done exactly to her tastes and she instantly felt comfortable, an emotion she hadn't thought would come for another few weeks in this new environment. Directly across from where she stood was another archway with more stairs leading upward.

Professor Dumbledore stepped forward and placed a hand on the table. "This table will produce any food or drink you ask for as long as you are either seated in one of the chairs or touching the table at the moment of the request. The house elves would be happy to provide you with anything you'd like."

"Can I ask for any type of food? American or European?" Awena asked tentatively.

He smiled widely. "Yes, I've already briefed the elves on the different variety you might ask for. I'm actually quite partial to your New York style pizza, but with a little touch of my own of course."

She smiled back. "I would love to have you over for dinner one night so you can show me."

"That would be delightful. Shall we go and see your room?"

She nodded walked towards the other staircase as he followed her. When she got to the top, she was confronted with an ebony door that bore an elegantly scripted "A" in silver. She pushed open the door eagerly and surveyed the round room inside. The fire place was now to her left and across from it on her right was a king sized canopy bed adorned in black and silver fittings, which looked impossibly comfortable. Next to the bed on the right was an armoire and on the other side was a desk. But the thing that grabbed her attention immediately, what she moved toward after taking in everything, were the two double doors directly across from her, opaque silver curtains spread to show the glass and scenery beyond them. She stepped onto the balcony and took in a long breath of refreshing air. The amazing view allowed her to see almost all of the grounds, including a sparkling lake and a vast expanse of trees. She turned around and went back inside with a big grin on her face.

"This is wonderful, Professor. Thank you," she said sincerely.

"I'm glad you like it. Of course, all of the furniture color can be changed with a spell. But I suspect you already know it, don't you."

There was a hint of pride in his voice that made her suspicious. How much did he already know about her? She brushed the thought away.

"Yes, I do, but I'm quite satisfied with the way it is."

He smiled and clasped his hands together. "Excellent! Now would you prefer to stay here and unpack or would you like to accompany me to the Great Hall for a bit of lunch?"

Right on cue, her stomach rumbled, answering the question for her. "Some lunch would be nice."

His smile broadened. "After you, then."

When they were in the walkway again, Awena said goodbye to Ella and took Professor Dumbledore's proffered arm again. Before they reached the curve of the hall, Professor Dumbledore said in a loud, clear voice, "The Great Hall." Before her eyes, the corridor shifted and changed once again.

Draco didn't understand what all the fuss was about. It was just one new student from America, not the Queen. For Merlin's sake, the teachers had all put on their best robes and he had never seen them so anxious before. Even stoic McGonagall was fidgeting, smoothing her already perfectly smooth hair and flattening non-existent creases. What had happened to the poised and authoritative instructors he had seen for the past five years?

He sighed and massaged his temples. There were so many things he could be doing right now instead of waiting in a receiving line. It was a gorgeous day and he could be riding his broom or take a walk or doing something, anything, to keep himself occupied; or more correctly distracted. He had been adamant about finding things to occupy his time for the past week he had been there. If he was not completely immersed in something for more than a few minutes, memories began to creep back to the surface of his consciousness and he did not want to remember right now. Because he had finished all of his homework back at the manor, he had gone to the library after his first day and found a window seat so isolated from the main area that Madam Pince often forgot he was there after a time. Every day, usually in the late afternoon, he would avoid as many of the professors as possible and enter the library, fill his arms with as many books as he could carry and ignore the world for as long as he could. He had absorbed himself in ancient mythology texts the previous night for so long that he could barely walk back to his dorm.

When he wasn't locking himself away in the library, he was usually outside riding his broom around the vast grounds of Hogwarts. His broom was one of the few things Dumbledore had been able to get from his home along with two sets of clothes and a cloak. The Ministry was conducting an elaborate investigation into everything the Manor contained. All of the Malfoy assets were frozen until further notice, which denied him not only his belongings but also the access to his and his parents' bank accounts. Dumbledore assured him that money for clothing and school supplies would be made readily available, as not even Dumbledore could override the Ministry's tirade at this point. Draco had been raised to despise the idea of charity but tried to receive Dumbledore's offer with as much gratitude as possible. Dumbledore promised a trip to Diagon Alley would be called for shortly after the transfer student's arrival.

Now he was standing here waiting for said transfer student, who would just end up being another Granger from what the Headmaster had told him.

_Great, that's all we need around here. Another bookworm to annoy me to death._

But no matter how much he complained to himself about the Golden Trio these days, he realized that he didn't see them in the same light anymore. His opinions had always been based on what his father had taught him and now Draco was determined to never be like him. As hard as this was proving to be, the only thing Draco could never get rid of was his father's stubbornness.

All of a sudden, one of the doors swung open and Draco felt the tension in the room increase tenfold. Dumbledore walked into the hall, eyes sparkling and robes flowing around him as usual, but it was the person on his arm that Draco openly stared at. She was easily the most beautiful girl he had ever seen, with eyes as blue as sapphires and dark, shiny black hair that fell in waves to her lower back. He promptly closed his mouth and composed himself as her eyes swept the room, but his eyes remained fixed on her even as she passed over him without a second glance.

As the professors went up to greet her one by one, Draco was slightly appalled to see that McGonagall was close to tears. Merlin, the girl wasn't that incredible. When she saw that even Snape was shaky in his approach, Draco began to question the sanity of the staff. He smiled faintly when he saw how unprepared the girl was for the welcome she getting. At least he wasn't the only one who was surprised. Finally it was his turn to go up and he tried to walk across the hall with as much confidence as possible without adding the arrogant manner his father always seemed to possess.

As he approached the new girl and the Headmaster, he saw that she was even more beautiful up close. Her features had a soft, angular arrangement and her high but elegant cheekbones reminded him of his mother. For a moment, his face softened and became more vulnerable with the recognition of the similarity, but he closed his eyes and quickly readjusted his features. When he met her gaze again, he thought he saw concern flash through the girl's eyes but it was gone in the next instant he looked for it.

"And this is Draco Malfoy," Dumbledore said. "He will be in your year and I'm sure he will be able to help you in any way possible."

Draco smiled and winked at her. "I'm looking forward to doing so," and he took her extended hand in his before bending over and placing a kiss on the back of it.

As he looked back up at Awena, he saw that her eyes sparkled with amusement and a smile threatened to break through. It might have done so if at that moment the doors of the Great Hall hadn't slammed open. An irate voice echoed through the hall.

"Get away from her Malfoy!"


	6. Coming to Grips

**Hidden Blessings**

**By: SavingAngel8**

**Chapter 6: Coming to Grips**

A livid Harry Potter practically ran over to the three stunned people closest to him and wrenched Malfoy's hand away from his unknowing sister's. Malfoy simply smirked but there was fire in his eyes.

"Sorry, Potter, didn't know you had already made claims to this lovely creature. It kills me to say 'nice job' but I must give credit where credit it due," he drawled mockingly.

Harry's ears turned red. "How dare you, Ferret. You will never speak of her in that way again. In fact, how about you never speak or look at her again period."

"How do you know she doesn't want to get to know me? I can be very charming, after all. Afraid you won't measure up?"

Harry guffawed. "You're at such a low level that anyone could surpass you. She—"

"She has a name and is standing right here!"

Both boys looked over now at a rather angry Awena. "First of all, I don't even know you," she said to Harry, "and I'm certainly not involved with you in any way nor have we even been introduced." Turning her heated gaze on Draco she said, "So I would appreciate it if you would both treat me like a human being and stop acting like two toddlers fighting over a toy."

Her face relaxed slightly and she looked at Professor Dumbledore. "Now that everything's settled, lunch sounds fantastic."

Dumbledore just chuckled but offered her his arm and together they went over to the round table set up in the middle of the hall. The teachers, some marveling at how quickly this new girl could shut up the two biggest fueders in the school, followed them. Indeed Harry and Draco were still standing in the same place, inches away from each other, gaping after Awena.

Harry recovered first and shot over to grab the last available seat next to Awena. Draco just shook his head and took a seat between Snape and McGonagall.

Harry stuck out his hand and looked apologetic. "My name is Harry and I'm sorry about before. That was very rude. I'm going to be in your year, too, so I hope we can become good friends." His voice became a little strained at the end because he wanted to be able to say more but had promised Dumbledore that he would wait until the meeting after lunch.

Awena heard the vulnerability in his voice and her previous irritation sifted away. "I'm Awena and I'm sure that would be possible," she said and grasped his hand.

The rest of lunch was uneventful, consisting mainly of the teachers' inquiring about Awena's previous education. Draco noticed that everyone was impressed by Awena's extensive knowledge, even McGonagall who muttered, "Well, we've got another Miss Granger on our hands." And he didn't doubt it, although there were some noticeable differences. Awena clearly had an enthusiasm for learning but it was obvious she hadn't buried her entire life in it. She had grace and charm and knew how to handle herself in public without the awkwardness Granger sometimes had.

Potter was the most attentive, seemingly trying to keep her talking for as long a possible. Draco could see in some of her facial expressions that she was aware and puzzled by Potter's persistence but nevertheless indulged him. Draco grew tired of it quickly and asked to be excused before lunch was half over.

"Of course you may go, Mr. Malfoy," Dumbledore said, an understanding look in his eyes that made Draco uncomfortable. "Where might I find you later, though, for I have some news to discuss."

Draco froze for a moment before attempting to look nonchalant. He glanced briefly at Awena, not wanting to give away his unease in front of a stranger. He saw a slightly anxious look pass over her features before settling into passive curiosity, as if she had once again picked up on the emotions he thought he was doing a good job of hiding.

"If you need me, I will be in the library for the rest of the night Professor," Draco said evenly. Then he left, convincing himself that he was merely imagining that a pair of piercing blue eyes were following him on the way out of the Great Hall.

Lunch continued to progress smoothly until Dumbledore stood and signaled the end.

"Miss Johnson, would you mind accompanying me to my office for a small talk?"

Awena looked away from the Headmaster and around the table, as everyone had suddenly become very serious. However, the boy sitting next to her seemed to roll his eyes and shake his head while muttering, "small talk." But Awena just smiled graciously at Professor Dumbledore.

"Of course, sir. It's the least I could do."

He offered her his arm again and together they proceeded out of the hall.

It wasn't until they reached his office that she realized two professors and the boy from her year had followed them. The dark one, Professor Snape, took a seat by the window while the woman she recognized as Professor McGonagall sat in a chair beside the Headmaster. As Awena took the seat in the middle of the room, she saw Harry sit in the remaining seat by the door. He was glaring at Professor Snape, who either didn't notice or was blatantly ignoring him. Instead the professor stared out the window and looked very bored, though his eyes seemed deep in concentration.

The Headmaster stood in front of his desk and seemed to be searching for how to begin. There was an obvious tension in the air and finally Awena couldn't stand it any more.

"What is going on?" she said as calmly as possible, although by this point she wanted to yell to break the silence.

Professor Dumbledore focused on her face and finally took a deep breath.

Almost half an hour later, Awena sat in shock. Harry watched her face go through various emotions, from anger to confusion to distress and back to calm. He noticed Snape was also watching Awena intently and glared at the professor again. Why was he even here? Couldn't he report for double-agent lap-dog duty later and be filled in? Harry didn't want Awena having any contact with anyone associated with Voldemort and Snape was at the very top of that list, followed closely by Malfoy. He grimaced as he remembered Awena's hand in Ferret-face's grip. What was Malrat even doing here, anyway? Shouldn't he be off kissing Voldemort's ass with the rest of his scum-sucking family?

Finally, Awena looked up from her silent war with her thoughts, causing Harry to refocus on the situation at hand.

"I guess all the safety measures make sense, then. Putting me in my own rooms with so many enchantments seemed excessive, but I suppose I understand your logic now."

Dumbledore smiled slightly. "Yes, I guessed you would notice the precautionary spells on your chambers that I didn't tell you about. Professor Sirenza said you had become very adept in your lessons of feeling magic before you left the States."

Awena merely nodded her acknowledgement of the comment, but Harry was piqued by this skill. He had never even heard of it before and wondered what other abilities his sister possessed. He was also satisfied that Dumbledore had evidently taken the necessary measures to make sure Awena was safe.

Awena looked at Dumbledore again with an intense expression. "How am I supposed to help? Forgive me, professor, but this is all extremely overwhelming and I'm not sure what you all expect my response to be. I would tell you what I think you want to hear, that I will gladly fight for your cause and for the safety of my," she glanced at Harry with an odd mix of confusion and compassion, "brother, but I'm not entirely sure I'm even capable of being who you want me to be in this war. I would need a lot more training and preparation to even begin to be confident enough in myself to assist you." She looked down and was lost in thought again for a few moments. "But I guess I owe it to my," here she stumbled slightly and swallowed, regaining her voice, "parents, both sets of them, to at least give it a try." She returned Professor Dumbledore's gaze again, slightly calmer and more composed. "So what now?"

Dumbledore smiled. "My dear, for now I hope you can simply adjust to life in a new school and settle in. In time, and yes with some further training, I'm sure your skill will be immensely useful and necessary but for the time being just focus on you studies and perhaps some new friends."

He winked at Harry after the last comment and Awena finally looked at Harry fully for the first time since the conversation had started. There was shyness in her gaze but an intense curiosity nevertheless. She looked away and at her hands again, lost in thought. After a beat of silence she rose from her chair.

"I think I'm going to take a walk."

"Not—" Harry started, but then flushed. Everyone was looking at him so he finished, "Not near the Forbidden Forest."

He saw Snape roll his eyes and sneer but Awena merely smiled lightly and nodded. She walked towards the door but her hand paused on the handle. She turned towards Harry.

"Would you like to walk with me?"

Harry's face lit up and he didn't care about the plain excitement he knew showed. He nodded and followed her out the door without a backward glance.

As they stepped outside, Harry led Awena towards the lake and away from the dark forest. Awena saw his furtive glance and smiled.

"Don't worry, I won't go near it. I mean, I might be carried off by a herd of centaurs or something," she said jokingly.

Harry frowned. "I don't know if they would carry you off unless you seriously insulted them. But they also consider human existence an insult to them so they might do so with very little provocation."

He was still deep in thought, mapping out the parts of the forest in his mind that could pose the biggest threat, when he looked over at Awena's shocked face and couldn't help but laugh.

"There's really a herd of centaurs in that forest?" she asked with a hint of awe. "And I thought they couldn't live this close to humans."

"Well, they do live pretty deep in the forest and Dumbledore does have a deal with them not to attack anyone, but that only applies to people not wondering around in their territory or in the forest in general. So don't ever go so far in that you can't see Hogwarts or light from the edge."

Awena nodded but still looked at Harry with a curious expression. "Have you had contact with these creatures?"

Harry laughed harder this time. "I'm sorry," he said in response to Awena's surprised expression, "but I think it's safe to say I've had entirely too much 'contact' with them." Awena just looked at him expectantly so he continued. "Well, during my first year, I was sentenced to detention in the Forest with Hagrid. It was me, my two friends Ron and Hermione, and Malfoy."

"The other boy who's here early, right?" Awena asked.

Harry was annoyed by the mention of him but simply answered, "Yes. Anyway we were paired off into groups, Ron and Hermione and me and Malfoy, and sent to find an injured unicorn and—"

"There are unicorns in that forest, too?"

The stories only escalated from that first one. Sometimes he went chronologically along a list of events, sometimes he skipped between years if it was relevant. They had walked around the lake several times before Harry had sufficiently gone through the past fifteen years of his life. By the time the sun had begun to set, he and Awena had sat down on a cluster of rocks and were watching the squid thrash around in the water. Well, Harry was watching the squid. Awena was watching Harry as he finally got around to discussing what had happened at the end of last term.

"Now the Ministry wants to pay for a memorial service and are releasing a statement that they were wrong about his guilt." Harry snorted. "I agreed to it all but I told them they weren't allowed to be there." He laughed a little again at the remembrance of Fudge's ridiculous face but abruptly stopped as the image of Sirius' face flashed through his mind, first laughing then dead. A single tear escaped his eye and rolled down his cheek.

"He was all I ever had," Harry said as he hurriedly wiped the tear away with the back of his hand. "I mean, I have Lupin but he's a little too busy to worry about me. And Sirius was more than my parents' friend, he was…" he trailed off.

"Family," Awena said softly, still watching his face with an unreadable expression.

Harry looked at her sharply, as if remembering she was there. "Yes," he replied in an equally subdued tone, holding her eyes with his. "Except, of course, now there's you."

Awena wanted to look away, wanted to show him how uncertain she was in this new situation but she couldn't. There was so much hope, so much unjustified love in his eyes that held her in place. And she could feel it too, this unspoken but undeniable bond between them. She had felt it earlier, when he had introduced himself and when she had first touched his hand but she hadn't been able to explain it at the time. Now, she recognized the familiarity and comfortableness she felt while around him as natural, instinctual feelings of a close personal connection that could only come from family. It scared her and made her want to smile at the same time.

"Harry," she said slowly, not sure how to put her thoughts and emotions in the correct words, "I don't know what to think right now or how to help you with this battle you're fighting. But I do know that after today, I want to be here. And I promise, I'm going to do everything possible to be there for you, too."

She placed her hand over his resting on the rock. He took it up and kissed her fingers lightly. She had a fleeting thought about how different this kiss was from the one that had touched her hand earlier that day, but she dismissed the memory quickly. She didn't even know that boy and from his manner he most likely tried to charm all the girls he met.

"Thank you, Awena," Harry said, breaking her out of her straying thoughts. "I know this must be difficult for you so I'll try not to ever make you uncomfortable although I can't promise I won't be protective." He winked and she laughed before standing up, pulling him up with her. She gave him a hug and he tentatively returned it before letting it before letting it become a warm embrace.

"I always did want a big brother. I would have fought too much with a sister." She pulled back a little to grin broadly at him. He grinned back before taking her hand.

"Come on, I want to get some dinner in you." Harry got down from the rock and when he turned around to help Awena she seemed deep in thought.

"What is it?" he asked, concerned at the sudden change in her mood.

She let him help her down before asking, "Do you have any, you know, pictures of them? Our…parents, I mean."

Harry just smiled. "Of course. We can look at them after dinner."

Awena looked up, excited now. "Great, let's go." She took his hand and began to walk back towards the dark outline of the castle.

Harry laughed at her enthusiasm as they walked. "Honestly, all we would have to do is stand in next to each other and look in the mirror. You look just like our mother," he said with a far off but appraising look in his eye.

Awena blushed a little but smiled. "Well then we better go find a mirror."

Harry laughed again and hand in hand they walked back to Hogwarts.

From his window seat in the library, Draco watched the two head back from the lake. He hadn't been able to stop his gaze from flickering to their walks around the water since he realized that his favorite place in the library had a perfect view of it.

He didn't know why he felt so jealous over something so insignificant. He hardly even knew the girl, let alone had a reasonable chance with her. He was too much of a mess himself to be thinking of someone else for the time being. But it angered him that she was clearly going to end up with Potter. He'd always managed to have everything Draco wanted and a gorgeous girlfriend just solidified the whole aura of "I'm Potter, I walk on air."

Draco angrily shut his book and left it on the seat for next time. He decided to go and get his broom. A good fly around the Quidditch pitch would take his mind off of things. He didn't want to go to dinner anyway and have to see the pair of lovebirds be all lovey-dovey. Actually, he had been avoiding as many meals in the Great Hall as possible and probably would have lost a significant amount of weight if the house elves hadn't been leaving trays of food in his dormitory. He wondered briefly how Dumbledore knew all of his favorite foods. He just shook his head as he got up from the window. What was he thinking; Dumbledore knew everything.

Right on cue, the Headmaster appeared from around a shelf of books. "Ah, Mr. Malfoy, there you are."

Draco was in enough of an irritated mood that he wanted badly to respond churlishly to the professor but stopped himself from doing so. If it weren't for Dumbledore, he didn't know where he would be right now—perhaps in some cell at the Ministry. So as much as he hated being grateful towards others, he had come to respect Dumbledore for what he had done. Draco thus attempted to respond as coolly as possible.

"Yes professor. What is it you wanted to talk to me about?"

"Just a couple of things. The Ministry has informed me today that they still are not at liberty to release any of your holdings until they are positive they have uncovered all evidence possible against your father." Draco resisted the urge to roll his eyes. The Ministry had been itching to poke around his home since before Draco was born. He couldn't imagine the disasterous state the Manor would be in when the Aurors were done with their "investigation."

"Also, I would like to reiterate the fact that I or any of the staff are always available if you need to talk about anything. What you've gone through is very terrible and I feel trying to deal with it by yourself could be harmful and counterproductive to your heal—"

"Thank you, Headmaster," Draco cut him off sharply. He tried to calm down as he went on. "I am very grateful for your help and appreciate the advice. But I am fine," Draco tried to hold Dumbledore's deep gaze for as long as possible but eventually he had to look away or risk betraying how not fine he actually was. It most likely didn't matter; he instinctively knew the façade he had been maintaining for the past two weeks was shaky at best. But he was going to hang onto it until it shattered, no matter what.

Dumbledore nodded silently and said, "Of course, Draco. You're always welcome and I will let you know as soon as I hear anymore news of your affairs."

Draco met his eyes briefly and nodded before Dumbledore left as silently as he had come. Draco stood completely still, counting out a full two minutes before moving again. With one last look out the window, he confirmed that Potter and his new girl were nowhere to be seen on the grounds. He would take the long way around to the dungeons to collect his flying gear and in effect avoid everyone. Draco rubbed his temples as he left the library. It was more difficult than he would have imagined, distracting himself so he didn't think about anything too much.

_Or feel anything_, a slithery voice whispered in the back of his mind. That voice sent forth the beginning of an image and his father's eyes flashing in the firelight.

Draco's head shot up and his own eyes went cold. He forced the memory into a small corner at the back of his mind and walled it there.

Awena couldn't help but leave a smile on her face on her way back from Gryffindor Tower that night. It was late but she felt keyed up and resolved to read a book before trying to fall asleep. She smiled wider at the idea of ordering a late night snack of milk and cookies from her new table.

After she had given the password to Ella and bid her goodnight, Awena walked up the stairwell and into her living room. She looked around and marveled at her luck. She still couldn't believe she had this whole space to herself.

But all of her airy thoughts disappeared quickly as a loud thump sounded from above, causing her to look upwards sharply. She flicked her wrist and her wand was immediately in her hand, emerging from a special arm cuff that was activated by certain movements. It was especially useful because when her wand was in the cuff, it couldn't be removed by anyone except her.

Another sound came from above and Awena took off her shoes before silently making her way up the stairs to her bedchamber. When she got there, she took a deep breath, counted to three in her head, and threw open the door.

But she instantly rose from her defensive position at the sight before her.

"Pyrtog?"


	7. Reminders of Home

**Hidden Blessings**

**By SavingAngel8**

**AN: So if you hadn't noticed already, this chapter is particularly long. They won't always be like this but it should tide everyone over until I update again. I will sincerely try to update this more often but I am a full time college student and this semester in particular is very busy for me. However, I hope you keep reading and please review! I love hearing from everyone, whether it be praise or criticism, so please try to review more often so I can continue to improve my writing. Have fun with this chapter! **

**Chapter 7: Reminders of Home**

"He's my house elf, Headmaster. Well, not _my_ house elf but my family's. He's been with us since before I can remember and played nursemaid for me when I was a child," Awena smiled lovingly down at the elf cowering by her right leg. Pyrtog had his head hung in shame. Awena looked back up at Professor Dumbledore. "My parents must be going crazy without him. He pretty much runs our whole household and is especially close with my mother."

Awena had waited until the morning after she had discovered Pyrtog in her room to go to Professor Dumbledore. Harry had come to her rooms early to see what she wanted to do that day so they had gone up to Dumbledore's office together, with Pyrtog clutching one of Awena's hands in both of his.

At Awena's last comment, Pyrtog looked up at her. "Madame's new house elf's name is Misty and Madame likes her very much," Pyrtog finished in a hopeful voice, trying to distract Awena from any forthcoming punishment.

She smiled briefly before becoming stern again. "That still does not excuse you smuggling yourself into my trunk. Does Mom even know you're here?" Pyrtog gave a wail and buried his head into Awena's pant leg.

"Pyrtog merely wanted to make sure Mistress was going to be safe. Pyrtog couldn't stand that Mistress was going so far away," he sobbed, his words muffled by her jeans.

Despite her best efforts to resist, Awena couldn't stand to see him like this, so she knelt down and opened her arms so he could cry on her shoulder while she patted his back. Harry watched this with an odd fascination, never having seen such an interaction between a human and a house elf like this before. Once Pyrtog had quieted, Awena began to whisper to him and when they finished talking Pyrtog was nodding enthusiastically. Awena kissed him on his shiny forehead before standing up.

"We've discussed it and, if it's alright with you, Headmaster, Pyrtog would be glad to help the other elves in the kitchens and be assigned to taking care of my quarters on his own. He's goodhearted and I know he won't cause any problems."

Dumbledore smiled warmly. "Of course he can stay, but I must insist that you inform your parents as soon as possible to make sure they approve of the new situation."

Awena nodded and smiled before looking down at Pyrtog's quivering form and subtly nodding towards Professor Dumbledore. Pyrtog lit up and stood straight immediately. "Thank you, sir," he said, bowing towards Dumbledore. Pyrtog then smiled up at Awena. "Thank you, Mistress," and vanished into thin air.

Harry stood up from his chair with a wide grin on his face. Dumbledore also stood and faced the two teenagers.

"Well now that that's settled, shall we go and have some breakfast?" The two students nodded and Dumbledore moved towards the door. On their way to the Great Hall, Professor Trelawney appeared and fell into conversation with Dumbledore about comets so Harry and Awena lagged behind

Harry chuckled and Awena looked at him. "What?" she asked.

Harry just shook his head lightly and said, "I'm sorry, but I haven't seen a house elf that upset since I walked into the kitchens last year. They would all just come up to me and then couldn't get three words out without stuttering for at least five minutes, poor things."

Awena smiled questionably. "Why were they so afraid of you?"

"They weren't, they were in awe of me or something. House elves around here seem to be fascinated with the fact that I'm Harry Potter. Remember what I told you about Dobby?" he said with a broad grin.

Awena laughed and nodded. "Oh, right, I forgot. Don't worry, Pyrtog won't go around trying to help you in any destructive ways like dropping a cake on anyone's head. Although, when I was younger and threw a temper tantrum he did force me to eat spinach for a whole week." She grimaced at the memory, which made Harry laugh. Awena joined in and soon they were both laughing fools. They entered the Great Hall in this fashion, with Awena holding onto Harry's faded red T-shirt for support while Harry had an arm around her waist to stabilize them both.

"Boy, Potter, you sure move fast in your relationships. But do my stomach a favor and keep the PDA down to a bare minimum," a voice drawled sarcastically from the table in the center of the room.

Awena and Harry sobered up quickly when they heard this, but Harry was the only one to actually get angry. Awena simply stood there, a very contemplative expression on her face. Upon closer inspection, however, there was a spark of amusement and curiosity in her eyes.

"Shut the hell up, Malfoy," Harry spat, walking over to the table with Awena trailing behind him. "You wouldn't know what you were talking about if you knew all the answers in the universe."

Draco clapped slowly. "Oh very clever, Potter. Now I'm going to go sit in a corner and cry."

Harry opened his mouth to retaliate but was interrupted.

"Now, now ladies. Can't we get through one meal without a fight or are you both utterly incapable of being civil while in the same room?" Awena said, a little smug at the open-mouthed expressions the two had adopted after being addressed as members of the opposite sex. She rolled her eyes as she sat down. "Now that's a look the girls will go for."

Draco instantly snapped his mouth shut and stood up smoothly. He smiled as he turned to Awena. "Saucy. Well, at least you have good taste Potter." He winked at Awena before spinning and walking out of the Great Hall.

Harry glared at him as he went before sitting down beside his sister. As he began to pile food on his plate, Awena had to wipe the small smile off her face. Eventually Harry turned to her, visibly calmer but still a little peeved.

"Sorry about that, but I told you I have a bad history with that guy. I'll try harder not to lose my temper next time."

Awena smiled and nodded before reaching over and buttering a bagel. They were eating quietly for a while, each lost in thought, when Harry suddenly sat up a little straighter and turned to Awena with a mischievous grin.

"I almost forgot about what I had planned for us today, but your story on our way here reminded me."

Awena leaned away from Harry slightly, mockingly adopting a wary expression.

"What?"

"You're going to return the favor."

"What favor?"

"This whole morning is going to be devoted to you telling me about yourself."

Awena smiled and relaxed. "Oh if that's all, where would you like me to start?"

After they were done eating, Harry led the way to the Astronomy Tower with Awena's arm looped through his. When they got there, the sun was shining brightly with only a few clouds in the sky. Harry sent up a charm that created an invisible shield to keep them from getting sunburned but still allowed them to feel the sun's warmth. Awena conjured up large fluffy pillows to cover the floor, leaving no visible stone in any cracks between the red and white material of the cushions.

Harry shook his head. "It's incredible how far ahead of us you are. You and Hermione are going to get along great."

Awena's expression became nervous. "I hope so. I haven't had much luck with friends in the past few years."

She was looking absentmindedly into the distance and Harry put a hand on her shoulder. "Don't even worry about it. Everyone's going to love you."

She gave him a small smile but still looked unsure. She moved away and collapsed on top of the pillows, rolling over so she was on her back. Harry propped himself up against the wall closest to her and got comfortable.

"So," she sighed, eyes closed, soaking in the sun, "where do you want me to start?"

"Wherever you want," he said, sitting further into the cushions.

She smiled, eyes still closed, and began. "Well, the first thing I remember from my life in America is dancing. My mother put me in dance classes from the time I was three and I remember twirling around on a big stage all dressed in pink to the sound of Beethoven. Then my memory jumps to being on a big balance beam while a man teaches me how to do a handstand. That was gymnastics, when I was four. My parents wanted me to be as active and have as many friends as possible before I went away to Sowbury. So they figured some kind of sport or art was the best way to do that.

She sighed again, but this one wasn't as lighthearted as the last. "They were right. I had lots of friends, both inside school and through my activities. Up until seventh grade, I was one of the most popular girls in school. My three closest girlfriends and I walked around as if were on a cloud. I was consistently placing in the top three at competitions, boys were asking me to dances, it was if nothing could go wrong. And then, the winter before my thirteenth birthday, I decided to tell my friends about why I wouldn't be coming back to school the next year. I had always known about the world I came from but I was so excited to let my Muggle friends in on my secret. So I sat my three girlfriends down in my room one day and told them all about who I was.

Awena winced slightly as she recalled the next image. "The reaction wasn't what I had hoped for. One of them burst into tears and ran to the farthest corner of my room. The other two looked on in disgust and fear, like I was a monster. They called me a freak of nature and told me never to speak or come near them again. Before they left, my father put a charm on them to make sure they could never speak about what I had told them but couldn't perform a full Obliviate for random legal reasons.

"Things got worse after that. Even though they couldn't tell my secret, they still hated me enough to decide to mess up my life. They spread rumors that I had done stuff with multiple guys, that I cheated in gymnastics, and that I had in some way backstabbed all of them. The first week back after I told them was a nightmare. My name was constantly whispered when I walked anywhere and I couldn't turn to anyone for a friendly face."

Harry had narrowed his eyes at the last part of the story. "They were your friends and they betrayed you so easily."

Awena opened her eyes and fixed her gaze on a distant wispy cloud. "Yeah, well, it only goes to show that the higher you climb, the farther you have to fall. If it weren't for Eric, I don't know what I'd have done."

She smiled but Harry became confused. "Who?"

Awena looked at him, still smiling. "My best friend from back home. We dated for about a month or two in sixth grade before it became _very_ clear we were better suited to being good friends." She looked back towards the sky as she continued. "He was still on vacation that first week back after winter break, but it only took one look at me to see that I was miserable. After his first day back, he came over to my house and practically begged me to tell him what had happened. I was so hesitant to open up, unable to think of anything other than the possibility that I might lose the only friend I had left. But then he said, 'I don't care if you're the biggest slut or the worst friend in the world. You're still my friend and I'll always be here as long as you want me to be.' I finally broke down and told him everything after that, from my being a witch to the scene with my girlfriends and the untrue rumors. Through it all he just listened and hugged me but it wasn't until I stopped crying that he spoke. He said, 'I can't believe they didn't realize how special you are,' and from there I knew everything was going to be okay.

"The next couple of weeks at school were filled with a private war between his friends and my old ones. He convinced his group of friends that my old friends were spreading false rumors because they had grown jealous of me. He never actually spread any rumors about them but Eric was an extremely popular person for all the right reasons back then, and even now through high school, so many people took his word for things. He was a genuinely nice guy, which made the people he hung out with look better than the kinds of people my former friends associated with. My old friends tried to spread more lies about why he was sticking up for me but with no success. While I never rose to the level of popularity I had had before, I also didn't strive to do so and trusted almost no one besides Eric. Even after I went away to school, he was and is the only friend I keep in contact with.

"By this time I had found Arion." Her voice took on a sort of dreamy quality. "It's incredible for a Seer to find his or her familiar. It's like this instant connection that pulls you to that other being, like an invisible bond. It happened when I was eleven and with my parents on Assateague Island. Wild horses live and breed there and periodically large groups of them are gathered up and sold at an auction to keep their numbers from growing too large. My parents and I were watching the horses run and the men try to catch the ones marked for penning. All day everyone had been talking about this young black stallion that continued to elude the catchers. I had wondered up a marsh bank to try and get a better look at the horses when I saw him standing on the opposite bank. We just looked at each other for several seconds before he began to wade through the shallow water. He came right up to me and lowered his head and when I touched my forehead to the white spot on his forelock, the reaction was immediate. Our minds and souls connected in a magnetic way, though not in the sense that I could read his thoughts yet. That came later, after about eight months. My father 'bought' him from the auctioneers, although truth be told Arion would have followed me anywhere from that day on."

They sat in silence for a few moments. A small smile played on her lips at the memory.

"What happened when you went away to school?" Harry asked.

Awena's smile froze and then she cleared her throat. "Well as soon as I arrived, the teachers took a special interest in me. The tutor my parents had hired to help me develop my gift a year prior had prepared me well for the challenges that the powerfully gifted professor, Professor Sirenza, had for me. When she realized my potential, she spread word to the other teachers who then treated me as a kind of pet, a golden child if you will. I was already wary about making friends after the events of the past year and with the attention the teachers shamelessly showered on me, it became easier not to have anyone be too close. Many of the girls resented my abilities and others were constantly asking for favors."

Harry interrupted her as she took a breath. "Sorry, but 'favors'? What do you mean?"

Awena rolled onto her side to face him, propping her head up on her hand. "Oh, you know, things like scrying, reading their fortunes, or predicting the future on command. Professor Trelawney teaches some of the simple stuff that I never really had to learn how to do. It came instinctively once my teachers taught me what to look for, the places in my mind I was supposed to access for different skills."

"You can predict the future on command?" Harry looked alarmed but sounded genuinely intrigued.

Awena laughed. "Not really. It's rare for any Seer to be able to do that and it takes an extremely powerful mind. But after a while some girls were so adamant—not believing I couldn't do it—that I got good at mimicking how a real futuristic prophecy would look and sound and then spat out the most obscure stuff I could think of. Most of the girls took it pretty seriously for a while. One girl even cut off all her hair and jumped naked in the pond by the school because she thought it would bring her the love of her life. Unfortunately some Grindylows attacked her and she almost drowned which prompted the professors to scold me harshly and prohibit any further fake predictions." She frowned. "I did feel bad about that one but interestingly enough, that particular prophecy was real and she ended up meeting a very prominent foreign duke the next week who married her after she graduated. But I didn't really bother explaining that at the time."

Harry shook his head slowly and although he knew he should reprimand her, he actually found it funny and smiled.

"Served them right, didn't it?" he chuckled.

Awena blushed slightly and looked down, running her hand over one of the velvet pillows. A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. "It was still wrong, but I was amused by it at the time. Other than that, I mainly filled my time riding Arion or in the library. My teachers would give me almost whatever I asked for if I acted sweetly enough and so the restricted books weren't restricted for me. My lack of friends at school caused me to become fairly well-read and every summer I would add more books to the library at home." She paused as she thought of something and then sat up, stretching her arms as she did so. "Which reminds me that I have to get work filling that bookshelf in my room. You said we're going shopping soon, right?"

Harry nodded. "Dumbledore said we'll be taking a trip to Diagon Alley tomorrow actually. You can get whatever you need there. I have plenty of money if—"

"Oh no, thank you, but my parents already transferred a substantial amount of money to last me through the year, if not another three." She shook her head. "You'd think that they thought I spend money in every store I come across. It's all in a new account at that bank in town, Gringotts right?

Harry grinned. "Yeah, that's it. I have to go get money from there tomorrow too. It should be a fun trip." He winked at her.

She laughed. "I'm sure it will be. Will Draco be joining us?"

Harry's amused face hardened into an angry expression. "Yes, he will. Listen, I really don't want you hanging around him too much. His family is one that supports Voldemort and his own father is a Death Eater. It was also his father's fault that my friends and I had all the problems we did back in second year. Malfoy is a very nasty and terrible person who will always hate my friends and me. You can't trust him, no matter how charming he may seem."

Harry maintained such a glaring, serious expression that Awena felt she could do nothing but nod in assent. To break the tension, she smiled at him and got to her feet. "Don't worry about me," she said, offering her hands to pull him up. When they were both standing, she shrugged nonchalantly. "I'm a big girl."

Harry laughed but still looked concerned as they walked toward the stairwell. He squeezed the hand he still held. "I know, but I'm your big brother so it's my job to worry."

Awena smiled and flicked her hand behind her, making the pillows disappear. She lightly punched him in the arm as they walked down the steps. "Hey, only by a day."

He grinned cheekily. "Older is older so I'll always win." He stuck out his tongue, making her laugh.

"Whatever you say. Do you want to come down and meet Arion? He's been dying for me to visit him."

Harry frowned. "I actually have to go write a few letters, both to my friends and the Ministry. But I promise to go with you to see him soon." They had reached Gryffindor Tower and he let go of her hand. "I'll try and make it down for dinner, okay, but if I don't then come find me and we'll go to the kitchens or something."

"Okay," she said. She stood on her toes to give him a kiss on the cheek. "You're too tall," she said, grinning.

He rolled his eyes but smiled. "Sorry."

"It's okay, I forgive you. Bye."

She turned back at the stairs and waved before disappearing from sight.

Harry sighed and gave the password to the Fat Lady. As the portal swung shut behind him, he began to worry that he shouldn't have let her go alone but brushed away his fears.

_What could possibly happen?_ he thought, turning his mind towards the long list of letters he had to write before the night was over.

Draco was walking around the grounds in no particular direction when he heard a sound drifting through the air to his left. His curiosity piqued, he began to walk toward the little structure that he saw in the distance. He didn't remember it being there before—nothing had been that close to Hagrid's hut in the past except the giant's garden. As he approached, the voice became recognizable as a woman's voice and, quite frankly, was one of the most beautiful things he had ever heard.

He approached the structure silently, easily avoiding any sticks or rocks that would give him away, before peering inside the large opening in front to locate the melody's source. The strong smell of hay and old horse dung confirmed his suspicions that it was in fact a stable. The inside was divided in half, one side fenced in to create a large stall and the other side dedicated to preening and grooming complete with riding gear, brushes, and a place to chain the horse to make it stand still.

Currently, a sleek black-haired horse was chained to that very spot and had its back turned to where Draco stood at the entrance. Draco smiled when he saw who was grooming the creature, the obvious source of the music.

_I should have known. Nothing ugly could come from her_.

Draco scowled at himself and shook his head to be rid of the thought. He couldn't be going soft, not now. He sighed silently and leaned against the frame of the archway, watching the girl before him who seemed oblivious to his presence. He closed his eyes and let the music wash over him, making him become more relaxed and forgetting that he probably shouldn't linger too long.

Awena was smiling to herself as she sang and was careful to keep her back to the entrance. She had known Draco was there as soon as he arrived. Arion had picked up the new scent and told her immediately. She decided to be surprised as she 'discovered' him. No need to freak him out. Yet.

She bent under Arion's neck to groom the other side of him and purposefully made her song falter with a gasp. Draco's eyes shot open and he stood rigidly, his hand reaching up to run through his hair in a nervous gesture. Nervous about being caught or nervous about being around her, Awena wondered.

"What are you doing here?" Awena enquired with honest curiosity in her voice.

Draco seemed to realize his exposed appearance and visibly closed up, a smirk appearing on his face.

"I heard some noise and thought I would come investigate. This," he said as he motioned around him, "has never been here before so I thought I'd check it out, too."

He fully entered the stable and approached the horse on the side Awena had just vacated, carefully avoiding its backside where body parts tended to flail out. The horse stamped, almost in defeat, as Draco passed safely by and leaned against the wall next to the tack. Awena chuckled lightly but shot the horse a stern look.

"Where's your boyfriend? He's been following you everywhere since you arrived. I'm surprised you two aren't roped together at the hip," Draco said sarcastically. If Awena hadn't been naturally perceptive, she might have missed the slight jealousy that was mixed in with the disgust.

Awena merely smiled mysteriously as she turned back to Arion and resumed brushing his coat. Time for some freak-out.

"Well he and I have a lot to talk about. I mean, we haven't seen each other in fifteen years."

Draco rolled his eyes. "Aw, how cute. Baby sweethearts. Excuse me while I get sick."

Awena faced him and glared slightly, forgoing the game. "Well wouldn't _you_ want to know everything about _your_ brother if you had never known he existed?"

Awena's glare quickly turned to laughter as Draco's jaw fell even farther than it had this morning. It was truly comical to see his normally composed exterior bare all of his emotions at once, with shock clearly overpowering the rest.

Draco began to babble slightly. "I…uh…I mean…wha…"

Awena smiled. "I'm surprised. Harry made it seem like the great Draco Malfoy always had _something_ to say."

Draco seemed to snap out of his stupor at that and give her a withering look. But inwardly he winced and was again a little surprised. If Potter had told her even half of the cruel things that he and his friends had done or said in the past five years, why wasn't she treating him as if he were a pest that needed to be crushed as her… brother and his friends and always done? Not necessarily without reason, of course. But if she was giving him even a small semblance of a doubt then he was going to use it to his full advantage before she changed her mind.

"Yeah, well people change, don't they? It's pretty hard to stay exactly as you are throughout your whole life, although some people actually manage to accomplish such a terrible thing," Draco said coolly as he cautiously approached the horse again. When he was about three inches away Draco reached out a tentative hand and, upon seeing no movement from the horse, began to stroke its neck in an effort to gain some acceptance from the creature. Almost against its will, the horse seemed to start relaxing under Draco's gentle touch. Draco glanced out of the corner of his eye and saw that Awena looked a little shocked. She recovered quickly, however.

"But what's the point of staying the same? That would get ridiculously boring." She wasn't looking at him but was obviously anxious for an answer.

Draco turned to her, excitement in his eyes. "Exactly. You would never explore new ideas or try new things."

Awena smiled at him. "Or go new places."

"Or meet new and interesting people," Draco said more quietly, still staring directly into her eyes. Awena was forced to look away first or risk blushing. Draco smiled slightly before summoning a comb off the wall and beginning to brush out the tangle in the horse's mane. His nimble fingers worked deftly as he chanced another question.

"This is a fine creature. What's his name?"

Awena smiled again as she continued to work. "Arion. My mother picked it out when we got him. She has a passion for Greek mythology and thought it would sound elegant when announcers at competitions had to read out our names together, which it did."

"Well partners should compliment each other in as many ways as possible, not just beauty," Draco said with complete sincerity, not taking his eyes off the mane he was finishing.

Awena couldn't contain the color that flooded her face this time but found her voice quickly.

"Wow, two compliments in five minutes. I'm surprised you're not cursing me into next week for being Harry's sister," she said in an offhanded way.

Draco grabbed her hand suddenly, stopping her motions. She met his eyes and saw the hurt and despair that he was trying to cover up with anger.

"I have changed. I know Potter might never believe that but please don't let yourself be influenced by what you may know of my past."

His voice was steady but his eyes were pleading by the end. Awena was shocked at how open his eyes were and could do nothing but nod in response. Draco took his hand away as if it was on fire and ran it through his hair, drawing in a shaky breath.

"I'm sorry. I'm not normally this… I guess emotional is the word. I've had a rough past couple of weeks."

He looked over at her, seeing that she was still watching him, and gave her a small smile. It was odd that instead of pity, which he dreaded and probably would have lashed out against, all he could find in her eyes was understanding. He quickly looked past her and saw the sky darkening. He sighed in disappointment before going to put the comb back on the shelf it came from.

"You better hurry if you want to ride before nightfall. I don't think it's smart to ride too late, especially this close to the forest, so be careful. Have a good night."

He began to head towards the door when Awena found her voice.

"Wait," she said, which made him stop but he didn't turn back to face her. It was probably better those eyes of his weren't watching her as she found the courage to continue.

"Would you like to come and have dinner with me? Harry had to go and write a lot of letters and said he probably wouldn't have the time to go to dinner. I told him I would wait to ride Arion until he was available so my evening's free. How about yours?"

Draco looked at her, his face guarded and one eyebrow raised questionably.

"Really?" he asked, trying to sound emotionless but failing to keep the hint of hope out of his tone.

She smiled reassuringly. "Yeah, just wait a minute while I get Arion settled."

Because she turned back to Arion to unchain him, she missed the huge grin that flitted across his face and actually reached his eyes where it stayed.

They walked in companionable silence back to the castle after Arion was comfortably situated in his stall. Awena realized that for once, she had absolutely no clue what she was doing. What was she thinking inviting her brother's archenemy to dinner when she barely knew him? But something told her that underneath his hard and sarcastic façade, he was vulnerable and unhappy. Instinctively she had reacted to those underlying emotions and reached out to him and now there was no turning back. The scary part was that she didn't even know if she would turn back if she had the chance.

When they got to the Entrance Hall, Draco made for the Great Hall but Awena grabbed onto the sleeve of his sweater to stop him.

"No way, I don't want to face all those teachers again. Besides, I want to try out my table."

Draco had no clue what she was talking about but was nonetheless relieved. Except for Snape, the teachers didn't generally like him and he was never very comfortable being around them for longer than necessary. He smiled slightly as she pulled him towards a turn. He heard her whisper something under her breath before they had reached the bend and watched in fascination as the hall shifted and rounded out before his eyes.

"Wow," was all he managed to say.

Awena grinned. "I know, right?"

Ella was dutifully arranging flowers once again but looked up as they approached. Her eyebrows rose daintily in surprise at the sight of Draco.

"I knew you would have the boys falling over you from day one, darling. But you better be careful not to bring too many of them back to your room alone or there will be a lot of gossip," Ella teased, winking at Awena but Awena noticed the woman glance nervously over her shoulder into the unknown recesses of the portrait behind her. Awena brushed it away as something she was imagining.

"I can't help it, Ella," Awena said grinning. "This is Draco Mal—"

But Ella interrupted her, saying, "Of course, dear. Everyone knows who Draco Malfoy is." Ella laughed a little and waved her hand casually but Awena definitely sensed that she was anxious. "It's very nice to meet you, Draco." Draco nodded and opened his mouth to respond but Ella hurriedly continued. "Now why don't you give me the password, Awena, so you two can get going."

Awena hadn't known Ella for very long but the way she was behaving seemed uncharacteristic. Awena decided to go along with it for now but before she could give the password she was interrupted yet again.

"Mummy, Mummy!" cried a small voice. Ella shot the pair of students a panicked look but before she could stop her, a small girl of about ten or so with flowing white blond hair ran into the portrait and tugged on Ella's emerald green dress.

"Watch Mummy! Mrs. Q taught me how to do a pirtette." And immediately the girl got into a dancer's pose and did a graceful pirouette. It would have been perfect had she not stumbled three-quarters of the way around upon seeing Awena. Her eyes went wide and she clapped her hands in excitement.

"Oh my gosh! You're the sister of Harry Potter! Oh my gosh! This is so amazing! I've heard all about you! Mummy, is she going to be staying with us?" The little girl turned back to her mother but Ella wasn't watching her anymore. She was staring at Draco with a worried expression on her face and the level of pain in her stare made Awena turn and look too.

Draco's face had gone ashen and his eyes were glassy. As Awena watched, one lone tear fell from the corner of his eye and streaked silently down his cheek. He was staring unblinkingly at the little girl.

"Draco?" Awena asked, reaching out to touch his shoulder.

But it was like he didn't realize she existed and in the next second he took a step towards the painting. More tears began to course down his face, alarming the little girl and causing her to step back and look confusedly at her mother.

"Darling, go back and ask Mrs. Q if you can stay with her for a little while longer. I'll come and get you before bedtime but don't come back until I come for you," Ella said all of this swiftly but in a quiet tone, as if she was trying not to wake a sleeping animal. Her eyes never left Draco's face.

"But Mummy I—"

"No buts, Narcissa. Do as I say right now." A sob escaped Draco's throat at the sound of the girl's name but remained oblivious to Awena calling out his own.

As Narcissa stamped out of the portrait in childish fury, Draco followed her with his eyes and something seemed to break in him when she had vanished from sight.

"No," he said brokenly. "No! Come back, mother! Come back! No!" And he forcibly threw himself at the painting, at the spot where the girl had disappeared. He began to beat on the frame, sobbing all the while and calling out for the girl.

Awena quickly cast a repelling charm on the painting, which sent Draco flying backward partially into her so that they both went down to the floor together. He wrapped his arms around Awena's waist and continued to cry into her hair, letting out all of the pain he had been holding in for so long. Awena looked from Draco to Ella, who had shed a few tears at the boy's obvious sorrow.

"Take him upstairs, dear. If he doesn't explain after tomorrow then I'll ask Dumbledore's permission to tell you myself, but right now he needs to calm down," Ella said sadly.

Awena nodded mutely before saying the password. Her wand came into her hand with a flick of her wrist and she muttered, "Suthio tempra." Draco's sobbing gradually waned as he slowly fell into a calm stupor that sent him to sleep. She cast a lightweight charm on him before slowly standing up, Draco cradled to her chest with his head resting on her shoulder. She walked carefully up the winding staircase and into her living room where she maneuvered Draco so she could transfigure the couch into a bed. She laid him down, conjured some blankets, and put a pillow under his head before releasing the lightweight charm. She thought she had put enough power into her other spell to last through the night but she didn't want to take any chances.

"Pyrtog," she whispered and with a small pop, the little elf appeared. He was facing Awena and did not see Draco as he began to speak.

"Oh, Miss Awena would be so proud of Pyrtog!" he exclaimed with glee. "Pyrtog has been doing so well with the work that has been assigned him and—"

"Shhh," Awena said softly. She couldn't help the small smile that formed on her face as she put a finger to her lips and then pointed behind him. Pyrtog slowly turned around but when he realized the possible danger was only a slumbering boy he relaxed a little. However, as he turned back to face her his face hardened into a disapproving look.

"Miss Awena knows it is not proper to have boys spend the night, especially when Master and Madame aren't here," Pyrtog said sternly. His little foot tapped in irritation as he waited for Awena to explain herself.

"But he became very distraught a few moments ago and I didn't know what else to do. I don't even know where his rooms are," Awena said sadly, playing the part of an ashamed child who was receiving a scolding. She bent down and gave him her best puppy-dog face. "Do you forgive me?"

Pyrtog rolled his eyes at her theatrics and sighed. "Of course Pyrtog forgives Miss Awena, otherwise Pyrtog would be out of the job he so loves."

Awena laughed quietly and kissed him on the forehead for the second time that day. "Oh silly Pyrtog, you know that would never happen because you are too much like family to me."

With that, she rose to her feet before continuing on her previous train of thought. "I was wondering if you could watch over Draco until he wakes up. I wouldn't want him to get scared waking up in an unfamiliar place. Whenever he wakes up, send him up to my room so I can let him know how to get out of this part of the castle. Are you too sleep to do all of that for me?" she teased gently, knowing full well that he had most likely already gotten his hour and a half of required rest sometime during the day.

Pyrtog raised what looked to be a wrinkly eyebrow and she bent down to give him another kiss before turning to leave.

"Thank you! Goodnight," Awena whispered as she disappeared the stairs.

"Pleasant dreams, Miss," Pyrtog whispered back. He turned to the sleeping boy with an exasperated sigh. "You must be special if Miss wishes to see you before you leave." Pyrtog conjured up a stool, a long bit of parchment, and a quill before beginning to work on his To-Do list for the coming day.


End file.
